About

Missing Scientists Conspiracy Theory, sometimes called the Eskridge Conspiracy after missing scientist Amy Eskridge, is an internet conspiracy theory about roughly a dozen scientists, researchers and others who are missing or dead that began spreading on various websites and social media platforms in early 2026 following the disappearance of former U.S. Air Force Major General William Neil McCasland. Other prominent figures in the missing or dead individuals covered in the theory include Amy Eskridge (NASA anti-gravity propulsion research scientist), Michel David Hicks (former planetary scientist at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory), Frank Maiwald (specialist in space research), Anthony Chavez (construction foreman who once worked at Los Alamos National Laboratory), Monica Jacinto Reza (metallurgist and materials engineer), Melissa Casias (administrative assistant at Los Alamos National Laboratory), Steven Garcia (government contractor at Kansas City's National Security Campus), Jason Thomas (assistant director of chemical biology at Novartis), Nuno Loureiro (plasma physicist and professor of MIT Plasma Science and Fusion Center), Carl Grillmair (Caltech astronomer and astrophysicist of exoplanets, galactic structure and dark matter) and David Wilcock (Ancient Aliens guest, paranormal writer, media personality and YouTuber).

The theory includes various explanations, including aliens being responsible for the missing scientists in an attempt to hamstring human advancement (similar to the science-fiction series Three-Body Problem), oil companies trying to keep humanity reliant on them instead of advancing nuclear energy or attempts to silence researchers working on UFO tech or advanced energy projects and materials science, among others.

In April 2026, the theory spread widely online as it prompted discourse and memes, eventually garnering widespread media coverage from various outlets. The prevalence of the theory also led to the FBI stating that it would be investigating the missing and deceased scientists to look for connections, with the U.S. House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform also saying it would investigate. U.S. President Donald Trump also commented on the story in late April.

Origin

Conspiracy theories about various missing or deceased scientists being linked together began to emerge sometime in early 2026, with one early example coming from the /r/conspiracy^[8] subreddit on February 19th, 2026, which was titled "Scientists Carl Grillmair and Nuno Loureiro Killed Within Months." The post from Redditor myfingersarebroke received over 40 upvotes and 15 comments in two months, stating:

I've been piecing this together since Grillmair's death hit the news, and it ties right back to that MIT prof's murder just two months ago. Carl Grillmair, a 67-year-old Caltech astronomer at IPAC, was found shot dead on his porch in Llano, CA, on February 16, 2026, from a gunshot to the torso – ruled homicide, but no motive or suspects named yet. Early reports hinted at a carjacking link, but that's gone silent in updates from KTLA and others. Then there's Nuno Loureiro, the 47-year-old MIT plasma physicist and head of their Plasma Science and Fusion Center, who was gunned down in his Brookline home on December 15, 2025, dying the next day. The supposed killer, Claudio Neves Valente, a former classmate from Portugal – also went on a rampage at Brown University two days earlier, killing two students and injuring nine before offing himself. Personal grudge??

Maybe, but the timing and their fields scream bigger agenda. These weren't average academics; their work could upend global power structures. Grillmair pioneered asteroid tracking with NEOWISE and Spitzer, spotting thousands of near-Earth threats that governments might classify to prevent panic or hide for elite survival plans – imagine if he uncovered an incoming rock tied to those bunker rumors.

He also led exoplanet spectroscopy, detecting water and biosignatures on worlds like HD 189733b, potentially proving alien life that could shatter religions or economies if it involved hidden ET tech. Plus, his discoveries of Milky Way stellar streams mapped dark matter, possibly revealing anomalies overlapping with classified physics like gravity manipulation. Loureiro, meanwhile, advanced fusion energy at MIT, controlling plasma for clean, limitless power that could crush Big Oil overnight – he became director in 2024, right as breakthroughs loomed, threatening the energy cartels' grip. Linking them?? Both deaths hit close together in fields blending energy independence with cosmic dangers, like fusion powering off-world ops or weapons against space threats. Valente's "personal" motive feels too pat – maybe he was manipulated as a patsy, with details like posing as a delivery guy adding to the sketchiness. This echoes past purges of scientists on UFOs, free energy, or microbiologists in the 2000s.

The theory became more prevalent online when, in late February, retired Air Force Major General Neil McCasland stepped out of his New Mexico home for a walk and never made it back.^[9]

Not long after, speculation began swirling online, with social media users suggesting the elderly former astronautical engineer, who supposedly ran a "UFO-linked" lab, may have been abducted or killed for his access to classified information.^[1]

Spread

As theories about Major General Neil McCasland's disappearance continued to spread online in the following months, additional instances of scientists disappearing or being killed, dating back to 2023, began surfacing.

Another scientist, an advanced materials researcher at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory named Monica Reza, had vanished while hiking near Los Angeles in June 2025. Months earlier, in December, Nuno Loureiro, a physicist at MIT, had been found murdered.^[1]

As these cases surfaced, internet users began compiling a list of "missing scientists," though other disciplines and occupations seem to be included, and asserted that the cases were connected or part of a larger plot to suppress information.^[10]

On April 17th, 2026, Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt posted a clip from a recent briefing to the official @PressSec X^[2] account, in which a journalist raises the question of the missing scientists, adding, "No stone will be unturned in this effort, and the White House will provide updates when we have them." The post received 550,400 views and 11,000 likes in about one week.

Memes referencing the conspiracy theory also appeared online in mid-to-late April 2026 as it spread on social media.

For example, on April 18th, 2026, Redditor checksout posted a meme to the /r/dankmemes^[6] joking that the character Syndrome from The Incredibles was behind the disappearances and deaths, garnering over 1,700 upvotes and 60 comments in six days.

On April 20th, 2026, NASA spokesperson Bethany Stevens posted a statement to the @NASASpox X^[3] account, quoting the original @PressSec video, writing, "NASA is coordinating and cooperating with the relevant agencies in relation to the missing scientists." The post did not see much traction on the platform.

In late April 2026, on TikTok, rumors also began spreading that scientist Amy Eskridge was killed for discovering a means to generate unlimited energy or that she had interacted with extraterrestrials.

On April 21st, 2026, TikTok^[4] user @unknownphenomena posted an out-of-context clip of Eskridge discussing "ultraterrestrials," which received over 2.5 million views and 252,900 likes in just three days.

Also on April 21st, Redditor B0r3dGamer posted a Eric Andre Shooting Hannibal Buress meme to the subreddit /r/dankmemes^[7] referencing the oil companies stifling nuclear science theory, garnering over 3,000 upvotes and 40 comments in four days.

On April 23rd, 2026, TikTok^[5] user @niickjackson posted a video echoing the "unlimited energy" discovery, pointing to its spread. The video received 1.5 million views and 243,000 likes in less than one day.

Various Examples

Search Interest

External References