Melissa Casias disappeared in June 2025 and was found in Carson National Forest nearly a year later.
TAOS, NM — The husband of Melissa Casias has asked a Taos court for a restraining order against a private investigator after her remains were found in Carson National Forest nearly a year after she disappeared.
Mark Casias filed the request in New Mexico’s 8th Judicial District Court as state police continue to investigate how his wife died. The court filing adds a civil dispute to a case already marked by family tension, public claims, unanswered forensic questions and broad attention because Casias worked at Los Alamos National Laboratory.
Melissa Casias, 53, vanished June 26, 2025, after leaving her home in Taos County. Reports on the case said she had dropped Mark Casias off at Los Alamos National Laboratory that morning and later brought lunch to her daughter. She was later reported missing after she did not show up for work. Investigators said she was last seen walking east along a state highway near the Talpa area. Her disappearance led to searches by law enforcement, relatives and volunteers. Family members later said the area where she was found had been searched before. Mark Casias said in court records that private investigator Thomas McNally accused him of killing his wife.
In the restraining order petition, Mark Casias alleged that McNally carried out an “escalating campaign of public harassment, defamation and criminal threats” against him and his daughters. Casias also claimed McNally did not have a valid New Mexico private investigator license. McNally has been described in reports as a private investigator hired by, or working with, members of Melissa Casias’ birth family. Those relatives have publicly questioned parts of the investigation and whether authorities gave enough attention to Mark Casias. Police have not charged Mark Casias with wrongdoing in the case, and officials have not publicly named a suspect.
A hiker found Melissa Casias’ skeletal remains May 28 in the McGaffey Ridge area of Carson National Forest, about six miles from the Casias family home in Ranchos de Taos. New Mexico State Police later confirmed the remains were hers. Investigators said a handgun was found near the remains. Officials have not released a final cause or manner of death. A CT scan and other forensic work were reported as part of the review, and the New Mexico Office of the Medical Investigator is expected to determine how she died. State police have said the death investigation remains open.
Casias’ job at Los Alamos National Laboratory drew national attention after her disappearance, though relatives and reports have said she worked in an administrative role, not as a nuclear scientist. Her case was discussed online alongside other deaths and disappearances involving people tied to science, aerospace or national security work. Authorities have not announced evidence linking her death to those cases. The confirmed facts remain narrower: she disappeared from Taos County in June 2025, her remains were found in a national forest in May 2026, a gun was found nearby, and investigators have not said whether her death was a suicide, homicide or something else.
The restraining order matter was scheduled for a hearing in Taos County District Court on June 16. The case is listed as Mark Casias v. Thomas McNally, et al. The court proceeding centers on Mark Casias’ claims of harassment and threats, not on criminal charges in Melissa Casias’ death. Any ruling could set limits on contact between the parties while the larger death investigation continues. The autopsy and investigative findings remain the key next steps in the criminal inquiry. Officials have not announced when those findings will be released.
The case has split grief into public view. One side has pressed for answers and raised suspicion about what happened before and after Melissa Casias disappeared. Mark Casias has denied wrongdoing through his court filing and said he fears for his family’s safety. McNally has publicly criticized the early handling of the missing person case and has questioned whether the scene where the remains were found could tell a fuller story. Police have not adopted those claims in public statements. The known record still leaves central questions unanswered, including when Casias died, how she reached the forest and what role, if any, the handgun played.
As of June 17, the death investigation and the civil restraining order case remain separate proceedings. The next major development is expected from either the court record in Taos or the medical investigator’s findings on Casias’ cause and manner of death.
Author note: Last updated June 17, 2026.