New details from police in New Mexico have shed light on an unusual project allegedly linked to a missing former scientist before he disappeared.
Anthony Chavez, a former employee of Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) — one of the United States’ most important nuclear research centers — was reportedly collaborating with a quantum physicist on work involving the idea that matter could exist “in two places simultaneously.”
Chavez, 78, was last seen on May 4, 2025, after leaving his Los Alamos home under unclear circumstances. Authorities say he left behind his recently purchased car, along with his keys and wallet.
He is said to have worked as an HVAC technician at the lab before retiring in 2017. But a police report obtained by Los Angeles Magazine journalist Lauren Conlin suggests Chavez may have had connections to highly advanced research involving concepts tied to quantum technology and the potential transfer of objects across distance.
According to the report, a friend told investigators that Chavez had been working with an unidentified Los Alamos scientist on a concept described as being “in two places at once,” an idea rooted in quantum physics.
That concept is associated with superposition, a phenomenon in which subatomic particles can occupy multiple possible states at the same time. Superposition is central to quantum computing and has also been explored in experiments related to quantum teleportation.
It remains unclear what role Chavez may have played in any research involving superposition or quantum teleportation, or how closely he was connected to scientists working in those fields at Los Alamos.
Quantum computing systems often require extremely cold environments — approaching minus 459.65 degrees Fahrenheit — to keep particles in their fragile quantum states. That technical challenge could explain why an HVAC specialist might have been involved in such work.
Anthony Chavez (Pictured) was allegedly working with a quantum physicist in Los Alamos, according to a newly obtained police report. He disappeared without a trace in May 2025
Boston-based technology company and quantum computer builder QuEra Computing explained in a statement: ‘In the realm of quantum computing, cryogenic cooling is essential for achieving the ultra-low temperatures required to isolate and control qubits.’
Qubits, or quantum bits, are what replace the traditional bits of a standard computer – which can only operate in one state at a time.
During an interview with NewsNation’s Jesse Weber, Conlin claimed that Chavez had recently purchased a silver Acura before his disappearance, which police found parked in his driveway with the keys left inside his locked house.
Chavez, a well-known smoker, uncharacteristically left his cigarettes and identification behind. The former nuclear lab worker was also known to not have a cellphone, making it nearly impossible to trace his whereabouts digitally.
Although friends considered him an avid hiker, investigators noted that Chavez was not dressed for a long outdoor walk and did not take any means of contacting him in case of emergency.
LANL has not responded to the Daily Mail’s repeated attempts to confirm Chavez’s duties at the nuclear facility.
The Daily Mail has also reached out to the Los Alamos County Police Department regarding the details given by Chavez’s friend, however, the name of the LANL physicist Chavez was allegedly working with has not been revealed.
If Chavez’s connection to quantum research is proven to be true, it would tie another missing lab worker to advanced technology that intelligence officials have told the Daily Mail could have made them targets of a foreign espionage plot.
Currently, a quantum computer that could process millions of qubits would need to be incredibly large, which is why your smartphone still uses traditional computer technology
Chris Swecker, who was the assistant director in charge of the bureau’s Criminal Investigative Division during his 24-year career, told the Daily Mail in April that foreign powers could be targeting citizens who have knowledge of national security secrets.
‘The first thing you go to is its potential espionage,’ he said.
‘Our scientists have been targeted for a long time, especially in the rocket propulsion area, by hostile foreign intelligence services.’
Swecker warned that enemy intelligence agencies have been attempting to derail top-secret US programs for decades, using one of two main methods: finding ways to steal the information from the US or killing those who know about the programs.
‘It’s been happening since the Cold War,’ he added. ‘Especially when nuclear technology and missile technology were first coming to the forefront.
‘I think we’ve even seen instances where nuclear scientists have been taken out. They’ve been assassinated.’
Chavez is one of five individuals who vanished without a trace over the last year, all of whom had ties to secretive research, including knowledge of nuclear weapons, advanced rocket propulsion and alleged UFO recovery programs.
Another LANL employee, Melissa Casias, disappeared just seven weeks after Chavez in almost the exact same fashion, leaving behind all of her belongings and identification in her New Mexico home.
Casias, a 53-year-old administrative assistant at LANL, was found dead on May 28 in New Mexico’s Carson National Forest. Her remains were reportedly found next to a handgun, but authorities have not released a cause of death in over a month.
Chavez was employed at Los Alamos National Laboratory (Pictured) until his retirement in 2017
Intelligence officials have claimed that Casias may have been in a position to access sensitive information on nuclear research that her superiors possessed.
Meanwhile, the FBI is still investigating the disappearance of retired Air Force general William Neil McCasland, who walked out of his New Mexico home with no keys, phone or wallet on February 27.
The general, who was in charge of the Air Force Research Laboratory, was deeply tied to both nuclear research at multiple US facilities, including LANL, and to the US government’s alleged activities involving extraterrestrial technology.
Swecker previously told the Daily Mail that there is enough evidence to suspect foul play in several of the disappearances and deaths, especially among those individuals tied to advanced research and rocket technology.
‘I think there’s enough of a pattern, even if it’s a small group, I think there’s a smaller group of missing people that warrants an investigation by the FBI, which is the lead agency in counter-espionage, counterintelligence,’ he said.
‘I would be looking for that, unless we show something points to another direction.’
