Retired Air Force Brig. Gen. Blaine Holt told Newsmax on Sunday the White House’s decision to direct a federal investigation into a growing number of deaths and disappearances among scientists with high-level security clearances could expose deeper divisions inside the intelligence community.
"I’ve got a lot of questions on this one," Holt told "Sunday Report."
"Two incidences that looked similar, that could be a coincidence. Eleven, not buying it," he said.
Holt was referring to a series of cases involving scientists, some with access to highly sensitive U.S. research, who have either gone missing or been found dead.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt wrote Friday on X that the White House is working with the FBI and other relevant agencies "to holistically review all of the cases together and identify any potential commonalities that may exist."
President Donald Trump said Thursday that he called a meeting to address the situation, calling it "pretty serious stuff."
"What we need to do now is we need to understand the common denominator of what all these folks had access to and what they were working on," Holt said.
"And we need to also understand … why is it that the White House is opening up a probe, but the FBI, the NSA, the CIA, DIA all have passed on this one, and they’re not looking at it as an anomaly," Holt added.
Holt said that split within the executive branch is itself significant.
"In the executive branch, we’ve got a very big split into who thinks this is a concerning issue and who doesn’t think this is a concerning issue," Holt said.
"And I think the answer to that question is going to be very revealing.
"We need to get after it and not let this go at all, we need to know where these folks are," he said.
Retired U.S. Navy Capt. Brent Sadler, appearing with Holt on "Sunday Report," said he would not dismiss the possibility of foreign involvement but cautioned that investigators should follow the evidence.
"I wouldn’t rule anything out and let due diligence play itself out with an investigation," Sadler said.
"The odds are that there’s a high probability of coincidence, but the number of these cases and similarities, because of the work they’ve done, I think, merits an official investigation," he said.
Sadler added that the situation underscores the importance of White House involvement.
"It’s unfortunate that it takes the White House’s engagement to make that happen," he said.
Authorities have not publicly confirmed any link among the cases, but officials said the review will focus on whether shared work assignments, access to classified programs, or other factors could point to a broader pattern.
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