Mystery of missing UFO-linked Air Force general deepens as new photo reveals final

A new picture of the missing Air Force general allegedly tied to UFO secrets has opened up an even greater mystery about the final hours before he vanished. 

The photo captured retired Major General William Neil McCasland exiting a local sporting goods store in New Mexico with a mysterious parcel just a day before he walked out of his Albuquerque home on February 27.

The new clue was released by the Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Office after a Freedom of Information Act request by Lauren Conlin, a reporter at Los Angeles Magazine.

McCasland was seen during the day wearing sunglasses and appearing alert and composed as he walked out of REI with the large white shipping bag and another smaller item tucked under his left arm.

It is not known what was in the mystery package, although such soft and malleable bags are often used for mailing clothing. The smaller, yellow item in McCasland’s hand has been theorized to be a lightweight first aid kit by viewers online.

According to McCasland’s wife, Susan Wilkerson, the Air Force veteran left behind his phone, wallet, wearable devices and prescription glasses when he left their home around 11am local time. She also claimed her husband ‘planned not to be found.’

McCasland had also changed his clothes, leaving his normal attire behind, and only took a pair of boots and his .38-caliber revolver with him.

The general’s disappearance has become a national talking point after it was revealed that he possessed both US nuclear and UFO-related secrets and his career allegedly connected him to several other scientists and nuclear workers who died or disappeared.

A new surveillance image shows retired Air Force general William Neil McCasland the day before he vanished without a trace on February 27

The item seen in McCasland’s hand on February 26 has been compared to a waterproof first aid kit by viewers on social media

In a post on X, revealing the newly obtained photo, Conlin speculated that McCasland may have been picking up previously ordered items from the camping and hiking store.  

‘McCasland doesn’t appear to be carrying a traditional REI shopping bag. However, REI does allow customers to place orders online and pick them up in-store, leaving open the possibility that what he’s carrying may have been retrieved rather than purchased during that visit,’ she explained Friday. 

In May, chilling bodycam and 911 recordings seemed to suggest that the general had a set of clothes his wife did not know about when he vanished.

Wilkerson was heard telling a 911 dispatcher in February: ‘He’s left his phone, he changed his clothes into I don’t know what. I think he’s on foot.’

Those recently released recordings also seemed to dispute Wilkerson’s claims on social media that her husband did not possess any up-to-date classified information.

Police were seen speaking to an unidentified female witness on the phone who claimed she and members of the US Space Force had dinner with McCasland the night before he vanished.

The unnamed caller claimed she worked with McCasland, who was still a member of the Kirtland Partnership, a nonprofit working to protect and expand Kirtland Air Force Base, a major military research facility and nuclear weapons lab in New Mexico.

The retired general reportedly met with the group at a restaurant in Albuquerque around 6pm local time, possibly minutes or hours after the photo in REI was taken.

William Neil McCasland, 68, was last seen around 11am on Friday, February 27 near Quail Run Court NE in Albuquerque, the Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Office said

‘He was the head of Air Force Research Lab to the point the man’s names are in the UFO documents that are fixed to be released,’ the witness claimed. ‘He’s in that depth, so he has a very high security clearance.’

The new photo of McCasland also appeared to show the general, known to be an avid hiker, in good health and active at the time of his disappearance.

However, the woman who allegedly met with McCasland said something seemed wrong during the meeting with Space Force and the retired general was not acting like himself that night.

‘I was shocked this morning when I saw the alert because what I noticed Thursday evening [February 26] is that he wasn’t his usual self. He was kind of spacey and quiet and you know that that happens with people.’

According to Wilkerson’s statement to police, McCasland was just prescribed a new medication hours before he vanished, which was supposed to battle several symptoms he was allegedly having that the couple feared were signs of cognitive decline.

McCasland was reportedly seeing doctors for his physical and mental difficulties, including brain fog and trouble sleeping.

Before police arrived at the home, Wilkerson had told 911 dispatchers the military veteran feared his brain was ‘deteriorating.’

Despite his wife’s claims of potential mental decline, government officials have revealed that McCasland was still being looked at as a key witness in the ongoing effort to declassify decades-old secrets related to UFOs and extraterrestrials.

In early May, Air Force veteran and UFO whistleblower David Grusch specifically named McCasland as one of the officers who had been in charge of classified programs related to non-human craft recovery and reverse-engineering.

Grusch alleged that the general had not been cooperative with recent efforts by lawmakers looking to interview him over his knowledge of America’s suspected contact with extraterrestrials.

Meanwhile, intelligence experts have specifically mentioned McCasland’s disappearance as a key concern tied to alleged foreign espionage.

Former FBI Assistant Director Chris Swecker has 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 nuclear research and rocket technology.

Swecker said: ‘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 warrant an investigation by the FBI, which is the lead agency in counter-espionage, counterintelligence. I would be looking for that, unless we show something points to another direction.’