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The Conspiracy of the 12 Scientists!

April 24, 2026

Missing and dead. Where did they go, and what happened? That is probably what you are wondering, and so am I. Say their names: Carl Grillmair, Nuno F. G. Loureiro, Monica Reza, Frank Maiwald, Michael David Hicks, Amy Eskridge, Jason Thomas, William “Neil” McCasland, Steven Garcia, Melissa Casias, Matthew James Sullivan, and Zobaidul Amin. Reports say that lawmakers and federal officials are looking into several deaths and disappearances involving people with ties to nuclear, space, or other scientific programs, which has now become widespread news across the country (Lubin, 2026; USA TODAY, 2026). Some of these individuals had connections to nuclear and space programs, which is interesting because it raises questions about whether they were involved in a revealing discovery. However, some family members of these scientists do not believe there are major concerning factors connecting their deaths or disappearances to a larger mystery (Lubin, 2026). Republican lawmakers raised this red flag, although they have not provided much context.

You may be wondering what my opinion is. I do not understand why lawmakers would inform the public about this situation but not give clear context. So much of the government is hidden in ways we do not always understand, and certain files and pieces of information are only released years later. These cases span from the beginning of 2023, yet not many people have been talking about them recently. I walk around campus and hear many other conversations involving the government and politics, yet I cannot believe this has not been mentioned once. Science is extremely important because it forms the foundation of information, discovery, and growth around the world. Research supports the idea of how public trust in science depends heavily on clear communication, especially when uncertainty is involved and that communicating uncertainty can affect how communities perceive scientific information. (Kerr et al., 2023) However, others argue that misinformation can destroy public understanding and trust in democratic decision-making with our government. (Lewandowsky et al., 2023) These officials giving concerning information without explanation raises a huge flag of confusion, frustration and fead which leads everyone into the question: What did these people know?

Did they find extraterrestrial life or a chemical that could potentially save lives on another planet? The possibilities feel endless, and yet nothing clear has been revealed. Was it our own government, or another country, that did not want life-changing information to come out? It does not add up that one of the deaths has been linked in reports to a mass shooter, while other cases involve missing people, suicides, or deaths with limited public information (Lubin, 2026). The story seems to move in many different directions, which makes the situation feel messy and confusing overall. Some people argue that it is unnecessary to release this kind of information if officials do not even have the full context themselves.

Personally, I will be waiting for day-by-day updates on this situation. Could it possibly be connected to powerful people or hidden networks, which may explain why some of these individuals disappeared? I think that if I were involved in this as an aspiring dentist who wants to work in biotech, I would be scared about the direction the world is heading. Our world is moving quickly, not only in science but in many other fields as well, and it often seems as though people with power are controlling how these advancements are handled. I am scared, and this is not me trying to scare others. I simply want to raise awareness.

Kerr, J., van der Bles, A. M., Dryhurst, S., Schneider, C. R., Chopurian, V., Freeman, A. L. J., & van der Linden, S. (2023). The effects of communicating uncertainty around statistics, on public trust. Royal Society open science, 10(11), 230604. https://doi.org/10.1098/rsos.230604

Lewandowsky, S., Ecker, U. K. H., Cook, J., van der Linden, S., Roozenbeek, J., & Oreskes, N. (2023). Misinformation and the epistemic integrity of democracy. Current opinion in psychology, 54, 101711. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.copsyc.2023.101711

Lubin, R. (2026, April 24). 12 US scientists have gone missing or died. The mystery has become the talk — and worry — of Washington. The Independent. https://www.the-independent.com/news/world/americas/scientists-missing-dead-fbi-investigation-b2963785.html

USA TODAY. (2026, April 23). Deaths and disappearances of US scientists: See the list. USA TODAY. https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2026/04/23/deaths-disappearances-of-us-scientists-see-the-list/89732321007/

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  Timothy Durham was convicted of rape when a test showed his DNA genotype matched the DNA recovered from the crime scene. Eye witnesses testified that Durham was in a different state at the time of the incident, but he wasn’t exonerated from his 3000 year sentence until follow up DNA analysis showed that the preliminary forensic analysis used in the trial was misinterpreted (Thomas et al.). DNA testing serves an invaluable part in our criminal justice system, but it comes with complications and bias that can lead to wrongful convictions and misinformed juries.  

Background:

Forensic genetics aims to identify the origin of a biological sample. It can be traced back to Karl Landsteiner who discovered human ABO blood groups. With blood groups, suspects could be eliminated based on their blood type. For example, if a suspect had type A blood and there was type B blood left at the scene by the perpetrator, the investigators could rule out the suspect. Unfortunately, the reverse didn’t work. If the suspect and perpetrator both had the same blood type, it can’t be concluded that the suspect was guilty. Blood identifiers evolved into 8 distinct categories which improved the ability to eliminate suspects, but could only conclude that (if the system matched) it might be the perpetrator or this person might be related to the perpetrator (Jobling and Gill). The field evolved in the 1980s with the discovery of Minisatellites, lines of repetitive DNA that don’t encode proteins. Minisatellite patterns in DNA create what we know today as the DNA fingerprint, and it has a much higher accuracy rate than previous methods (Augustyn et al.). Around the same time, a breakthrough for victims of sexual assault was discovered. In the case of assault, bodily fluids of both the victim and the assaulter can get mixed. A process called differential lysis was created which could selectively increase the concentration of sperm in a fluid sample thereby allowing for accurate DNA testing (Jobling and Gill). Forensics evolved to use single-locus probe testing after several years because of its ease of interpretation. It looked at specific minisatellites that had high variability between subjects. This was the first DNA-based method to be used in a criminal investigation. Two murder homicides from several years apart were connected using DNA evidence. The evidence was then used to exonerate an innocent man, and the guilty party was found when he tried to evade mandatory DNA testing for all men in the small town. His guilt was then reinforced when the DNA profiles matched, and he gave a confession (Jobling and Gill). Finding DNA at a crime scene doesn’t guarantee that you’ll find a murderer. There are issues with non-pure samples and limited samples that make DNA work difficult, and accreditation of facilities and new techniques and take time (Jobling and Gill).  

Subjectivity of DNA Interpretation:

In a 2009 publication, the National Academy of Science discusses the possibility for subjective influence in lab based forensics. The interpretation bias happens in complex cases where, for example, there could be a mixture of DNA. A study published in 2011 looked specifically at this issue. A gang rape happened in Georgia, and the mixture in DNA from the case was used to prosecute one suspect after another suspect took a plea bargain to testify against him. With DNA mixtures, there are three possible conclusions: suspect excluded, suspect cannot be excluded, and inconclusive. If the suspect is excluded, it means that there’s little to no possibility that his DNA is part of the sample. If the suspect cannot be excluded, it means that there’s a possibility that his DNA is part of the sample. In the trial, the DNA examiners who knew the context of the case concluded that the suspect being prosecuted could not be excluded. The 2011 study gave the DNA evidence from this case and the DNA profiles of the suspects to 17 forensic examiners. These examiners had no context of the case, and they all worked independently. Of the 17, only 1 came to the same conclusion (suspect cannot be excluded) as the examiners who knew the context of the case. Twelve of the 17 concluded that the suspect who was prosecuted and convicted had no relation to the DNA found in the sample. Not only does this show that subjectivity occurs due to the context of the case, but the 17 examiners came up with different findings based on their past experiences meaning that not all DNA analysis is objective. Some organizations like the Scientific Working Group on DNA Analysis Methods say that quantitative statistical evidence should be presented with every categorical conclusion, but the US doesn’t require this (Dror and Hampikian).

False Positives:

There are two categories that cause wrongful identification in a DNA report: coincidental matches and false positives. Coincidental matches are DNA matches between two unrelated people. The probability of these matches is about 1 to 500,000 for white individuals and about 1 to 350,000 for black individuals. This small probability of coincidental matches makes people feel confident in DNA evidence. False positives, on the other hand, are matches between DNA and test DNA that result from issues in the forensics lab. There have been multiple cases of forensics labs accidentally switching victim and suspected rapist DNA which lead to convictions that were later overturned when the lab realized the error. There are also cases of misreading or misunderstanding a sample. In a case from 1993, a man was convicted of rape because someone interpreted a mixed sample of victim and perpetrator DNA as an individual sample. The conviction was again overturned. To prevent false convictions, retesting DNA is allowed, but it’s not an efficient solution. Many people are pushing for statistical information on the probability of false positives, so that the jurors can make accurate judgements based on DNA evidence (Thomas et al.).  

Conclusion:

DNA analysis is a useful tool for the criminal justice system, but subjectivity can be an issue in forensic testing. To combat wrongful convictions, there are organizations like The Innocence Project who use DNA testing to free the innocent, but reformed forensic testing standards should be put in place to prevent subjectivity and to ensure juries are correctly informed during trials. https://www.innocenceproject.org/    

Citation:

Augustyn , Adam, et al. “DNA Finerprinting.” Encyclopedia Britannica , 26 Apr. 2018, www.britannica.com/science/DNA-fingerprinting#ref153186. Dror, Itiel E., and Greg Hampikian. “Subjectivity and Bias in Forensic DNA Mixture Interpretation.” Science & Justice, vol. 51, no. 4, 2011, pp. 204–208., doi:10.1016/j.scijus.2011.08.004. Jobling, Mark A., and Peter Gill. “Encoded Evidence: DNA in Forensic Analysis.” Nature Reviews: Genetics, vol. 5, no. 10, Oct. 2004, pp. 739–751., doi:10.1038/nrg1455. Thompson, William C, et al. “How the Probability of a False Positive Affects the Value of DNA Evidence.” Journal of Forensic Sciences, vol. 48, no. 1, Jan. 2003, pp. 1–8., doi:10.1520/jfs2001171.