WASHINGTON, D.C. – Nearly a dozen scientists linked to U.S. nuclear and aerospace research have died or gone missing since 2022. As questions grow about a possible connection between the cases, the concern isn’t just about who they were, it’s about what they knew.
“Just because somebody departs the government, I’ve said this for years, doesn’t mean that they leave their knowledge, like luggage or gear that they were issued, back with the government. That knowledge goes with them,” explained Jonathan Gilliam, a former Navy SEAL and retired FBI Special Agent.
These scientists were predominantly affiliated with four different agencies: the Energy Department, NASA, the War Department, and the FBI. President Trump says his administration intends to get to the bottom of it.
“Hopefully coincidence, I don’t know, whatever you want to call it, but some of them were very important people and we’re gonna look into it over the next short term,” Trump recently told reporters.
Gilliam told CBN News that it’s the combined knowledge of these scientists that could have made them targets.
“When you look at the totality of all these individuals, you’re looking at people who, you know, this person worked over here, and this person worked over here, but together, their knowledge now gives you insight into an apparatus or some type of widget…or technology that they’re working towards, that the government is working towards…It would behoove a nation state that’s our enemy, or even a friend, that’s an ally, that wants this information to then target these scientists,” Gilliam said.
Over the last several years, the number of incidents has increased, with some involving scientists who have simply disappeared. At this point, investigators want to find out whether these cases are connected.
“Put all of these people and the way they disappeared or died on a wall, on a dry-erase board, and then say, here’s some similarities, just like you would do with a serial killer. You know, you look at the, at the similarities, because when, when we see people that are victims of foreign activities, murder, disappearance or whatever, there are similarities,” Gilliam said.
Even if there’s no direct link, he believes this situation highlights a potential vulnerability in U.S. national security: what happens after experts with sensitive knowledge leave government service?
“There is, at this point, as far as I can tell, no overwatch of scientists and people who obtain this knowledge, or who have this knowledge that worked for the government. There’s no overwatch of them when they depart and separate from government official work,” Gilliam explained.
With Congress, the FBI, and the president now involved, the focus is simple: find the link, if there is one, and determine what this could mean for national security.
