Police have released new information and a picture showing missing nine-year-old Melodee Buzzard and her mother as the search continues.
The Santa Barbara Sheriff’s Office has provided an update with new information that they hope will help to find her.
The FBI has also removed her mother, Ashlee, who is believed to have taken her on a long journey before returning without her, from her house so that it can be searched.
What has happened so far in the case of Melodee Buzzard?
On October 14, the Lompoc Unified School District in California made a report to authorities claiming that Melodee hadn’t been seen at school for some time.
Officials then claimed that Ashlee Buzzard was uncooperative with the police and could not tell them where her daughter was.
The investigation centers around a road trip that the pair took in early October, during which Ashlee rented a car and took her daughter as far as Nebraska and then back through a number of other states.
Melodee Buzzard. Credit: Corinna Meza
However, there is some speculation that the license plate on the car was changed in order to avoid detection, as the same car was then later spotted driving on New York plates, before being returned in California on the original ones.
By the time Ashlee returned, Melodee was nowhere to be found.
Now, Sheriffs claim that the last known sighting of the nine-year-old was on the Colorado-Utah border.
New information could help solve the mystery
A picture from October 7 shows Ashlee and Melodee in the rental car agency, believed to be wearing wigs.
FBI agents have also searched Ashlee’s home after forcibly removing her to another location so that she ‘would not interfere with their ability to conduct a thorough search’ according to the Sheriff’s Department.
There are concerns that Melodee could have been left with a stranger, or worse, and she has been described as ‘at risk’.
Local authorities and the FBI are also searching a storage locker and the rental car.
Melodee and Ashlee were captured on CCTV appearing to be wearing wigs. Credit: SBSO
In a statement, the Sheriff’s Office said: “Investigators understand that this three-day road trip went from Lompoc to the Nebraska area, with the return trip including the state of Kansas.
“Detectives are now focused on determining where Melodee was during those three days and where she may be now.”
Melodee’s half-sister Corinna Meza told The Sun: “I do fear that she could possibly be with a stranger.
“There are allegations or assumptions that she could have possibly been sold to a man.
“It worries me because who is that person? Does Melodee know this person? Is she scared? All these things run through my mind.”
Her aunt added that she hadn’t seen the nine-year-old in four years, and another claims that the family has been left in the dark as to what is going on.
Lizabeth Meza told Banfield: “We spoke to the news girl who’s been following it, she called and just let us know what was going on … but as far as detectives, we’ve called, left messages, and they haven’t returned any calls, so we’ve been in the dark.”
Videos show her mother ripping down signs appealing for information
Meza went on to add that she felt hurt after seeing videos of Ashlee allegedly removing signs appealing for information from around her home, describing the footage as ‘extremely hard to watch’.
“I know my niece went out there, my mother-in-law and family members, and put signs up there, not only for the community see it, but for Ashlee to remember, you know, that you have this beautiful daughter, and we want her back,” Meza continued.
“We want her safe, and for her to just rip them down like they didn’t mean anything. It’s definitely heartbreaking.”
Anyone with information regarding Melodee’s whereabouts should contact Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Detectives number on (805) 681-4150.
Anonymous tips can be made on (805) 681-4171 or on the sheriff's website.