A retired U.S. Air Force general who served at a base long linked to rumors about aliens and unidentified flying objects (UFOs) has gone missing. Local police and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) are investigating, but they have struggled for a second week with no leads.
According to CNN on the 12th, retired U.S. Air Force Maj. Gen. William Neil McCasland, 68, left his home on foot in Albuquerque, New Mexico, at about 11 a.m. on the 27th of last month and has had no contact with family or friends since.
The Bernalillo County Sheriff's Office, which is responsible for the area, issued a missing-person alert on the 28th, the day after he disappeared. It then contacted owners of more than 600 nearby dwellings in an attempt to track his whereabouts, but to no avail. Citing a sheriff's office official, CNN also reported that McCasland left his cellphone at home.
The sheriff's office is currently working with the Air Force and the FBI on the investigation. It said no suspicion of a crime has been detected so far, but all possibilities remain open.
The missing Maj. Gen. McCasland is an engineer by training with a degree in aerospace engineering, and he earned degrees from the U.S. Air Force Academy, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), and Harvard Kennedy School. At the Ministry of National Defense, he worked on developing special military technology plans, including the Global Positioning System (GPS) and Space-Based Laser (SBL).
In particular, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio, where he served as director of the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL), has long been the subject of rumors—despite official denials—that it houses the bodies of aliens found in Roswell, New Mexico, in 1947.
Maj. Gen. McCasland is not suffering from dementia, but he is said to have an undisclosed "health issue."
Luis Elizondo, a former intelligence officer at the Ministry of National Defense, said, "I hope Maj. Gen. McCasland has not been targeted by criminals," adding, "I pray he returns safely and soon." He is currently calling for the release of classified information related to UFOs.
Susan McCasland Wilkerson, the missing man's wife, posted on social media (SNS) praying for her husband's safe return. She said, "There is no reason for my husband to be abducted in connection with UFOs," and "Neil (Maj. Gen. McCasland) does not have special knowledge about alien bodies stored at Wright-Patterson or debris from the Roswell crash." She also expressed frustration that there have been no leads on her husband's whereabouts.