Missing federal lab worker found dead in New Mexico forest, FBI investigating

Human remains discovered next to a handgun in a remote northern New Mexico forest were identified this week as those of a missing woman who had worked at a high-security federal lab.

Melissa Casias was first reported missing almost a year ago from her home in Taos, N.M., where her daughter found her valuables — two phones, wallet, identification, laptop — still at home, but Casias nowhere to be found.

Her newly confirmed death deepens the mystery around her disappearance, which is part of an FBI investigation into dead or missing federal scientists or staff members involved in sensitive research.