Ashlee Buzzard, the mother of missing 9-year-old Melodee Buzzard, has been arrested in connection with the investigation into her missing daughter, sources told ABC News.
Multiple law enforcement sources told ABC News that Melodee’s body was found in early December in Utah in an area where Melodee and Ashlee Buzzard traveled in October. Authorities believe Melodee was murdered and likely died in October, before she was known to be missing, sources said.
The FBI and Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office are searching for missing 9-year-old Melodee Buzzard.
FBI
Ashlee Buzzard was arrested following DNA results from the recovered remains, sources said.
The Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office has yet to comment, saying only that it will share “the main developments” in Melodee’s case at a news conference Tuesday.
The Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office released this surveillance image of Ashlee Buzzard, apparently wearing a wig, on October 7, 2025, in California.
Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office
The investigation into Melodee’s disappearance began Oct. 14 when a school district administrator reported her “extended absence” to authorities, the sheriff’s office said.
Authorities determined that Melodee and Ashlee Buzzard left their home in Lompoc, California, on Oct. 7 for a three-day road trip that took them to the Nebraska area, the sheriff’s office said.
Melodee was last seen alive on October 9 near the Colorado-Utah border, according to authorities.
Ashlee Buzzard returned to her home in Lompoc on Oct. 10 with the car she and Melodee had rented on Oct. 7, but Melodee was not with her, the sheriff’s office said.
Authorities claimed Ashlee Buzzard wore wigs and exchanged license plates during the trip, and said Ashlee Buzzard did not cooperate with the search for Melodee.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
