The Vanishing Minds: The Mysterious Deaths and Disappearances of US Scientists

Updates on the Missing and Murdered US Scientists

**Discussion begins at 2:30** A few weeks ago, we told you about the strange connection between missing and dead scientists in the United States.  The researchers all had ties to aerospace, nuclear science, and advanced technology.  Since that episode, the number has grown.  Some missing.  Some dead.  All connected, at least on the surface, to some of the most sensitive research in the United States.  Today we’re going to update you on the more recent connected cases, and give you overall updates on the investigations. Send us Fan Mail [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2265385/fan_mail/new] Support the show [https://www.buymeacoffee.com/3schemequeens] Theme song by INDA

The Circleville Letters: Someone is Always Watching

**Discussion begins at 3:50** In the late 1970s, the peaceful, small town community of Circleville, OH, was shaken when individuals began receiving strange letters.  They all came in the mail with absent or fake return addresses, and were postmarked from Columbus, OH, 25 miles north of Circleville.  The letters were handwritten in strange block letters and contained details about the recipients.  Over 1000 letters were sent, accusing neighbors of affairs, exposing private lives, and threatening violence if confessions weren’t made.  And whoever was behind them seemed to know everything including intimate details no outsider should have known.  Then, things escalated.  One victim died under suspicious circumstances while confronting the writer.  Another was set up with a booby trap that was supposed to kill her on contact.  What started as anonymous harassment was now something far darker and far more deadly.  But here’s where the mystery deepens.  A suspect was caught. A trial was held.  A man was sent to prison.  Case closed… right?  Not even close.  Because even after the conviction, the letters didn’t stop.  So who was really behind the Circleville letters?  Today we’re talking about a wild story involving secrets, paranoia, and the terrifying idea that someone out there might know you better than you know yourself. Send us Fan Mail [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2265385/fan_mail/new] Support the show [https://www.buymeacoffee.com/3schemequeens] Theme song by INDA

The Vanishing Minds: The Mysterious Deaths and Disappearances of US Scientists

**Discussion begins at 5:35** What if the brightest minds in science were being erased?  Over the past few years, a quiet pattern has begun to emerge.  Names that once lived in research papers, conference panels, and classified briefings are now showing up somewhere else entirely: missing persons reports, obituaries, and unanswered questions. Today we’re talking about nine scientists: William McCasland. Monica Reza. Carl Grillmair. Melissa Casias. Anthony Chavez. Frank Maiwald.  Micheal David Hicks.  Nuno Loureiro. Jason Thomas. Different fields.  Different backgrounds.  And yet their stories seem to echo each other.  Some were working on advanced energy systems.  Others on space observation, defense technologies, or experimental physics.  All of them were operating at the edge of what we understand.  Then, suddenly, they were gone.  So today we’re discussing these cases and trying to decide if this is just a tragic series of coincidences or if there is something linking these cases together. Note: After recording another scientist was added to the list of mysterious deaths and disappearances.  Steven Garcia, 48, was a property custodian for the Kansas City National Security Campus, the facility that manufactures more than 80% of all the non-nuclear components used to build the military’s nuclear weapons.  On August 28, 2025 he left his home on foot with a hand gun and no other personal belongings.  He has not been seen since. Send us Fan Mail [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2265385/fan_mail/new] Support the show [https://www.buymeacoffee.com/3schemequeens] Theme song by INDA

Alpine Divorce: When a Hike Becomes a Homicide

**Discussion begins at 5:25** Alpine Divorce: Ending a relationship by murdering one’s significant other during a mountain trip and passing it off as an accident, or more specifically, abandoning a partner in a remote outdoor setting.   The phrase originates from an 1893 short story by Scottish-Canadian author Robert Barr, titled An Alpine Divorce.  In the grim tale, an unhappy husband plots to kill his wife during a trip to the Swiss Alps, only for her to turn the tables on him, having already framed him for her murder before leaping herself.  Several high profile cases over the last few years have led to a viral trend of social media users telling their own stories of “Alpine Divorce”.  These tales of domestic abuse involve one partner endangering the other in the wilderness – with the victim either being left in a perilous situation, or merely abandoned without consideration for their safety and well-being.  Today we’re going to discuss some of the most high profile cases. Send us Fan Mail [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2265385/fan_mail/new] Support the show [https://www.buymeacoffee.com/3schemequeens] Theme song by INDA

The Pollock Twins: Back from the Dead

**Discussion begins at 4:30** In the late 1950s, a quiet family in the English town of Hexham experienced a tragedy that would forever change their lives, and eventually become one of the most famous alleged cases of reincarnation in modern history.  In 1957, two young sisters, Joanna and Jacqueline Pollock, were killed in a car accident while walking to church with a friend.  Their parents, devastated by the loss, tried to rebuild their lives while carrying unimaginable grief.  But about a year later, something extraordinary happened.  Their mother gave birth to twin girls: Jennifer and Gillian. Almost immediately, their father became convinced that the twins were somehow the rebirth of the daughters he had lost.  As the girls grew older, they began displaying strange similarities to their deceased sisters, including shared personality traits, specific fears, and even what appeared to be memories of places and events they had never experienced.  One twin was even born with birthmarks that closely resembled scars that Jacqueline had before her death.  The story would go on to attract the attention of researchers studying reincarnation, including psychiatrist Ian Stevenson, who documented cases of children claiming memories of past lives around the world.  But the Pollock Sisters case raises a difficult question: were these eerie similarities evidence of something beyond our understanding… or could they be explained by grief, suggestion, and coincidence?  Send us Fan Mail [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2265385/fan_mail/new] Support the show [https://www.buymeacoffee.com/3schemequeens] Theme song by INDA