Newly released police reports indicate that retired Air Force Maj. Gen. William Neil McCasland was attempting to resign from several high-level advisory positions within government-connected research laboratories in the days leading up to his February 27 disappearance.
McCasland, 68, was last seen leaving his New Mexico home without his phone, wearable devices, or glasses. He was reportedly carrying only a pistol, and his wife told 911 dispatchers that it appeared he was trying "not to be found."
The new details emerged through a Freedom of Information Act request by historical researcher Sara Bondink and were documented in a March 3 interview with McCasland's wife, Susan Wilkerson, and a member of the Bernalillo County Sheriff's GHOST Unit. Wilkerson stated that her husband was making a desperate attempt to resign from these secretive projects due to fears of severe mental decline.
Despite Wilkerson's previous claims that her husband no longer held top-secret clearances, the interview revealed he was an active member of at least four groups with deep ties to national defense secrets. These organizations, including Sandia National Laboratories, Riverside Research, the Kirtland Partnership, and a University Affiliated Research Center (UARC), are involved in high-level research for the Department of Defense, focusing on national security and advanced technology.
Just days before he vanished, McCasland flew to Washington D.C. to officially resign from Riverside Research, a nonprofit that provides scientific research and advisory services on advanced technology projects through contracts with the Pentagon and the U.S. intelligence community. Upon his return to New Mexico, McCasland told his wife he resigned from the board because he "could not keep up, mentally, with the conversation."
He was also a paid consultant for Sandia National Laboratories, a government-owned research lab developing advanced technology for national security, including nuclear weapons. Sandia primarily works under the Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration and supports Air Force research and development at facilities including Kirtland Air Force Base. McCasland had previously been in charge of AFRL's Phillips Research Site at Kirtland and served as the research unit's commanding officer from 2011 to 2013. He remained involved with the base after retirement as a member of the Kirtland Partnership, a nonprofit supporting the military research facility and nuclear weapons lab.
An anonymous caller told police that McCasland had a concerning meeting with the Kirtland Partnership and members of the U.S. Space Force on February 26, the day before his disappearance. This witness, who was present at the meeting, told police that McCasland "wasn't his usual self" and appeared "spacey and quiet." The witness also claimed McCasland's name appeared in UFO documents scheduled for release, indicating he held a high-level security clearance. McCasland had also attempted to resign from his position with a UARC tied to an unnamed university, citing the same fears of mental decline, though leadership reportedly tried to persuade him to stay.
Despite concerns about his mental state, government officials revealed that McCasland was considered a key witness in efforts to declassify decades-old secrets related to UFOs and extraterrestrials. In May, UFO whistleblower David Grusch named McCasland as one of the officers in charge of classified programs related to non-human craft recovery and reverse-engineering.
Grusch alleged that McCasland had not been cooperative with lawmakers seeking to interview him about his knowledge of suspected extraterrestrial contact. The White House has tasked the FBI with investigating McCasland's disappearance, as well as the disappearances of several other individuals linked to U.S. nuclear secrets in the New Mexico area over the past year. The remains of Los Alamos National Lab worker Melissa Casias were discovered in a New Mexico park on May 28. As of early June, there has been no sign of McCasland since his disappearance four months prior. He reportedly left with only a pair of boots and his .38-caliber revolver after changing into clothes his wife did not recognize.