New particulars have emerged within the ongoing seek for Melodee Buzzard, a lacking 9-year-old Lompoc woman who authorities now say was seen as just lately as Oct. 7 and should have been pushed to Nebraska by her mom.
Melodee’s mom, Ashlee Buzzard, refuses to cooperate with authorities or reply questions on her daughter’s location or situation, in line with the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Workplace. Relations on the woman’s father’s aspect say they haven’t seen her in years.
When Melodee was first reported lacking by college authorities final Tuesday, the Sheriff’s Workplace couldn’t verify any sightings of the woman inside the final 12 months. Since then, detectives, with help from the FBI, have narrowed the window significantly.
Individuals have put up a poster asking “The place is Melodee” exterior the Vandenberg Village residence the place the lacking woman’s mom, Ashlee Buzzard, lives. Melodee hasn’t been seen since Oct. 7 and her mom is refusing to cooperate with legislation enforcement.
(Lizabeth Meza)
“Detectives have gathered proof indicating that Melodee was together with her mom, Ashlee Buzzard, as just lately as October 7, 2025,” the Sheriff’s Workplace stated in a Monday morning replace. “Detectives have additionally decided that Ashlee could have pushed with Melodee in a White Chevrolet Malibu to areas exterior of Santa Barbara County to incorporate so far as the state of Nebraska.”
The Occasions has not been capable of attain Buzzard for remark.
The car, with license plate quantity 9MNG101, was a rental automotive and is not in Buzzard’s possession, in line with the Sheriff’s Workplace.
Final Tuesday, detectives made contact with the mom at her residence in Vandenberg Village, however Melodee was nowhere to be seen.
Melodee’s family members on her father’s aspect say the mom has refused to let members of the family go to the kid. They haven’t seen Melodee for about 4 and a half years and the latest picture authorities have of the woman is 2 years outdated.
Melodee’s father, Rubiell Meza, died in a bike accident in 2016 shortly after the woman was born. Buzzard then moved away from Santa Maria, the place she had been dwelling with Meza and his mom, in line with certainly one of Melodee’s aunts, Vicky Shade.
Melodee’s household on her father’s aspect say her mom, Ashlee Buzzard, has not allow them to see the woman in round 4 and a half years.
(Lizabeth Meza)
“She simply saved [Melodee] away from us after which she up and moved,” stated Shade. “She wouldn’t allow us to see her.”
In August, Buzzard took Melodee to the Lompoc Unified College District to enroll her in an unbiased research program, in line with a district assertion. After Melodee failed to choose up classroom assignments for a number of weeks, the district reached out to her mom after which to legislation enforcement, which triggered the seek for the woman.
On Sunday, the FBI introduced on X that it’s aiding the Sheriff’s Workplace with the seek for Melodee.
Lizabeth Meza, one other aunt of Melodee’s, stated the announcement made her really feel hopeful understanding that there have been extra groups looking for her niece.
The Meza household spent the weekend distributing fliers searching for assist finding Melodee round Lompoc, Guadalupe and the 5 Cities area of San Luis Obispo County.
“It’s been actually arduous not understanding something about her whereabouts,” Shade stated.
Indicators saying “The place is Melodee?” have been posted across the mom’s Vandenberg Village residence, the place on Sunday afternoon a number of dozen neighborhood members gathered to hope for the woman and demand solutions from her mom, in line with native TV station KSBY.
The seek for Melodee has generated important neighborhood curiosity and outrage in addition to web sleuths with theories about what occurred.
“Detectives are conscious of the sturdy neighborhood curiosity in Melodee’s case and are asking the general public to not try and conduct their very own searches or investigations,” the Sheriff’s Workplace stated in Monday’s assertion. “Whereas well-intentioned, these efforts may unintentionally intervene with investigative work already in progress.”
The latest pictures of Melody Buzzard, now 9, are two or extra years outdated.
(Lizabeth Meza)
Anybody with details about Melodee or anybody who has had contact with Ashlee Buzzard since Oct. 7 is requested to contact the Sheriff’s Workplace at (805) 681-4150. Suggestions can be left anonymously at (805) 681-4171 or at SBSheriff.org.
Ashlee Buzzard was seen by KSBY getting into her residence as just lately as Thursday and neighbors informed the TV station that she remains to be nonetheless dwelling on the home. Court docket data present that she filed for Chapter 7 chapter safety in 2017 and has a number of debt collections instances pending towards her.
Previous to Melodee being signed up for the unbiased studying program in August, detectives consider the woman was homeschooled for a number of years, in line with Sheriff’s Workplace spokesperson Raquel Zick. Nevertheless, the California Division of Schooling has no file of Buzzard submitting a non-public college affidavit, which is required for homeschooling, in line with division spokesperson Scott Roark.
