Lab worker who vanished last year found dead in New Mexico national forest

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Remains recovered successful a New Mexico nationalist wood person been identified arsenic those of Melissa Casias, a idiosyncratic astatine the Los Alamos National Laboratory who disappeared past year, authorities announced implicit the weekend.

New Mexico State Police said the remains were discovered by a hiker past week successful the McGaffey Ridge country of the Carson National Forest, a monolithic expanse of wilderness that is wrong driving region of Taos, the metropolis wherever she was from. A handgun was recovered adjacent the remains, authorities constabulary said. Casias would person been 53.

The aesculapian examiner's bureau volition proceed to behaviour tests to find the origin and mode of her death, according to police. When they shared her individuality Saturday, neither of those rulings had been made yet.

Casias was employed arsenic an administrative adjunct astatine the Los Alamos National Laboratory, her niece, Jazmin McMillen, previously told CBS News. She was the 2nd idiosyncratic employed astatine the laboratory to spell missing past year, pursuing the disappearance of Anthony Chavez, 78, successful May.

Both are among a radical of astatine slightest 10 missing oregon deceased scientists and laboratory unit who worked astatine delicate atomic oregon abstraction exertion labs, instrumentality enforcement officials person told CBS News. The FBI is starring an probe into imaginable connections betwixt the cases.

Casias was reported missing connected June 26, 2025, aft failing to amusement up to enactment oregon instrumentality location that evening aft visiting her daughter, authorities constabulary said. Family members aboriginal recovered her idiosyncratic belongings, including her ID, purse and compartment phones, which raised concerns astir Casias' whereabouts and wellbeing.

Casias was past seen walking unsocial connected a highway, wearing a backpack, McMillen told CBS News, aft she said she reviewed the surveillance footage that captured her aunt herself.

An probe into Casias' disappearance has been ongoing since she was reported missing and volition continue, according to authorities police. They said that they "extend their deepest condolences" to Casias' relatives "during this hard time."

The household released a statement of their ain done a societal media leafage called Find Melissa Mondragon Casias, which is dedicated to her case. The statement, besides released Saturday, was additionally obtained and published by CBS affiliate KRQE.

"We corroborate that the remains recovered successful Rio Chiquito are Melissa," they said successful the statement. "There volition beryllium much accusation to travel but what we tin archer you present is she was located successful an country antecedently searched. This is simply a batch to process, our hearts are dense and we afloat mean to proceed to prosecute answers for justice."

Callie Teitelbaum, Pat Milton, Daniel Klaidman and Anna Schecter contributed to this report.

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