Los Angeles re-examines the disappearances of retired Air Force General Neil McCasland, neuroscientist Ingrid Lane and the troubling death of UFO researcher Aidan Shaffer
Los Angeles has been actively investigating a growing number of scientists, aerospace figures and national defense insiders who have either vanished or died under mysterious circumstances. Recent focus has centered on retired Air Force General Neil McCasland, who disappeared in February 2026; NASA/JPL-linked scientist Monica Jacinto Reza, who vanished in June 2025; and Ingrid Lane, whose October 2023 death continues to raise questions. We will also revisit the mysterious death of UFO researcher Aidan Shaffer, including new material and records Los Angeles has obtained out of New Mexico.
Recently released body camera footage connected to the disappearance of retired Air Force General Neil McCasland reveals his wife told deputies he had recently been struggling with unexplained weight loss, anxiety and what she described as “brain fog” before vanishing from his Albuquerque-area home in February 2026. According to the footage transcript, McCasland’s wife said the retired MIT-trained major general had become unusually “clingy” the day he disappeared and complained of feeling mentally foggy after taking a newly prescribed sleep medication. She told deputies McCasland left behind his cellphone, smartwatch, vehicles and bicycles, which she described as highly out of character. The footage also shows investigators questioning her about missing firearms from an unlocked gun safe, hiking trails McCasland frequented and whether he may have taken a GPS or avalanche beacon device with him. McCasland’s wife additionally noted he had been preparing for an upcoming backcountry ski trip with friends but had expressed concern that his “physiology was going to let him down” during the excursion.
In another newly surfaced call connected to the disappearance of retired Air Force General Neil McCasland, an associate who worked with him through the Kirtland Partnership told authorities the decorated former Air Force Research Laboratory commander appeared unusually withdrawn and “spacey” during a dinner meeting the night before he vanished. This was the first the public had heard anything about the dinner. According to the call transcript, the unnamed caller said she had dinner with McCasland and Space Force personnel Thursday evening at Cervantes restaurant near Kirtland Air Force Base and immediately noticed McCasland “wasn’t his usual self.” The caller said McCasland, who was wearing a blue-and-white striped-collared shirt and a Kirtland Partnership name tag, appeared quiet and distracted throughout the evening. The associate also told authorities she contacted Kirtland security forces after learning McCasland was missing to determine whether the retired general had attempted to access the base, but officials reportedly found no record of his credentials being used. During the call, the associate emphasized McCasland held an extremely high-level security clearance tied to his former role overseeing Air Force Research Laboratory programs, adding that “the man’s name is in the UFO documents.”
McCasland disappeared from his home near the Quail Run area of New Mexico, without his glasses, Apple Watch and iPhone – a backpack and revolver were reportedly missing. There has been no trace of him since, except for an Air Force sweatshirt found about 1.5 miles away from the home (which has not been confirmed as McCasland’s).
Ingrid Lane, a neuroscientist who vanished alone in the Jemez Mountains of New Mexico after leaving a meditation retreat in October 2023, has also raised renewed questions. Los Angeles spoke with a source close to Lane, who confirmed she was either under contract with or actively working on a project at Los Alamos National Laboratory at the time of her disappearance. The source also said Lane’s co-workers and staff affiliated with Los Alamos played a significant role in the ground search efforts. According to the source, there was frustration that law enforcement at one point appeared to conclude Lane had “just wandered off.” However, Lane’s passport and driver’s license remain with her family, while investigators reportedly found three laptops and a burner phone inside her vehicle. The source also noted there were no footprints or scent trails surrounding the car.
Los Angeles also began examining the mysterious death, and the troubled final months, of UFO researcher Aidan Shaffer. Shaffer previously had public disputes involving Falcon Space’s Mark Sokol and claimed he had reported to the FBI allegations that Sokol and Falcon Space had obtained uranium. Shaffer reportedly died while in custody in New Mexico on March 9, 2026, with some reports indicating he suffered a heart attack. However, authorities have not publicly confirmed a cause of death. The state of New Mexico has acknowledged Shaffer’s death in custody, but officials have not released additional details regarding how he died. In the months leading up to Shaffer’s death, he alleged that local New Mexico authorities were corrupt and connected to criminal/cartel-related activity that resulted in the deaths of members of his family. Shaffer also wrote about hearing voices telling him to kill himself, claimed extraterrestrials were abusing or controlling him, and suggested he no longer had control over his own body.
Scroll to continue reading
The posts bore chilling similarities to allegations and psychological struggles previously described by late anti-gravity researcher Amy Eskridge before her death. Shaffer’s LinkedIn profile, however, indicated that he had not held a full-time position since 2023, which sources said may have contributed to ongoing mental health struggles.
However, Los Angeles obtained a troubling criminal complaint. According to Bernalillo County Metropolitan Court, Albuquerque police accused Aidan Shaffer of breaking a window and setting fire to a Northeast Albuquerque home in February 2026, causing more than $150,000 in damage. Investigators alleged Shaffer used a hammer to break a bedroom window before throwing a bottle containing an accelerant into the residence, igniting the blaze. The home belonged to his ex-girlfriend (he also used to live there), who currently had a restraining order against him.
Court records state officers were initially dispatched to the home following a family disturbance call, where a witness reported seeing a man outside the residence with a hammer before flames erupted inside the property. Investigators later alleged Shaffer had previously lived at the home and had returned there multiple times after the relationship ended. Authorities confirmed there was an active temporary restraining order in place at the time of the alleged incident.
The complaint further alleges investigators recovered information suggesting Shaffer may have attempted to target a gun safe inside the residence, though the effort was unsuccessful. Albuquerque Fire Rescue and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives assisted in the investigation. Shaffer was ultimately charged with arson and negligent arson, according to the filing.
Credit: Albuquerque Metropolitan Court
The charges were dropped upon learning of Shaffer’s death while in custody – Los Angeles has reached out to the Taos County Medical Investigator for additional details.
While there have been no major new developments in the disappearance of Monica Jacinto Reza, a geo-profiler previously suggested that, based on the available evidence, aspects of her disappearance could potentially point to a scene that had been “staged.”