NEED TO KNOW
- Melodee Buzzard was reported missing on Oct. 14 by a local school official
- Authorities determined she was with her mother, Ashlee Buzzard, on a drive across state lines during the initial stage of her disappearance
- Security camera footage obtained by investigators allegedly shows Melodee in a wig in what police say may have been an attempt to disguise her
Relatives say the California mother of missing 9-year-old Melodee Buzzard had barred the child’s paternal family from seeing her for years.
Melodee was reported missing by a school official on Oct. 14, prompting an intense search for the child across state lines, the Santa Barbara Sheriff’s Office previously said.
Investigators responding to her Lompoc, Calif., home met her mother, Ashlee Buzzard, but there were no signs of the child. Ashlee allegedly was unable to provide a “verifiable explanation” about the child’s whereabouts, police said.
Police say Ashlee has been uncooperative in the investigation, but she has not been named a person of interest in the case and hasn’t been charged with a crime in connection with Melodee’s disappearance.
As the search for Melodee intensifies, her relatives are opening up about the circumstances prior to her disappearance.
Relatives on Melodee’s father’s side say Ashlee refused to let them have contact with the child, local outlet KEYT reported.
“She hasn’t let us see her for a few years,” Bridgett Truitt, Melodee’s paternal aunt, told the outlet; the interview was further cited by the Los Angeles Times.
“And all of us have tried. But we never stopped thinking about her or loving her or praying for her.” Truitt told KEYT.
Melodee’s father Rubiell Meza died in a vehicle accident in 2016 when Melodee was a baby, the family said.
Ashlee’s mother Lori Miranda told KSBY that she herself hadn’t spoken to her grandchild in about two years, and came to learn about her disappearance after police called her to check Melodee’s whereabouts.
Melodee Buzzard reportedly seen in ‘altered’ appearance.
Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office
Investigators recently said in update that they believe Melodee’s appearance had been altered with a wig before she vanished.
As the investigation continues, Melodee’s extended family remains hopeful for her return.
Miranda told KSBY she has been holding on to birthday gifts for the child since February.
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Melodee is around 4 feet 6 inches tall and weighs 60 lbs., with brown hair and brown eyes, per the sheriff’s office, who is urging anyone with information to contact investigators at (805) 681-4150, via the anonymous tip line at (805) 681-4171, or online at the sheriff’s office website.
