Melodee Buzzard, 9, Hasn't Been Seen For Weeks. Now Her Mom Isn't Cooperating With Police - Beritaja

Family members are desperately searching for Melodee Buzzard, a 9-year-old woman who was past seen successful Lompoc successful August and whose mother refuses to reply questions about her whereabouts.

Melodee was officially reported missing Tuesday aft officials astatine the Lompoc Unified School District contacted the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office to study her prolonged absence, according to authorities.

The woman had enrolled successful an independent learning programme successful August, the schoolhouse territory said successful a statement, and sheriff’s officials opportunity she has not been seen since.

Sheriff’s deputies went to the girl’s location successful Vandenberg Village connected Tuesday. Inside they made interaction pinch Ashlee Buzzard, Melodee’s mother, but the woman was obscurity to beryllium seen, according to authorities. Her mother remains uncooperative pinch the investigation.

Vicky Shade, Melodee’s aunt, said that the girl’s mother has a agelong history of intelligence unwellness and refused to fto relatives sojourn the girl.

“Ashlee is mentally unstable and my mom tried to get custody aliases astatine slightest grandparent authorities to sojourn Melodee because she [Ashlee] wasn’t letting our broadside of the family spot her,” Shade said.

Shade’s brother, Rubiell Meza, is Ashlee’s father. He died successful a motorcycle accident successful 2016, soon aft Melodee was born.

Buzzard and Rubiell Meza antecedently lived successful Santa Maria pinch Meza’s mother. However, Buzzard moved distant soon aft Meza died and changed her telephone number, Shade said.

“I americium horrified for my small niece, I can’t ideate what she’s gone through,” Shade said. “This does not sound good. I conscionable want to cognize if she’s OK. We request to find her.”

The about caller photograph disposable of Melodee is 2 years old, according to the Sheriff’s Office.

Another 1 of Melodee’s aunts, Lizabeth Meza, said that Buzzard had struggled pinch intelligence unwellness for years. She said Buzzard has attempted to return her ain life aggregate times and was antecedently hospitalized for treatment.

Meza’s family has not been capable to spot Melodee successful about 4 and a half years, she said.

They are presently focused connected putting up missing kid posters about Lompoc and sharing Melodee’s communicative connected societal media successful hopes of generating leads about the girl’s whereabouts.

Buzzard was seen entering her Vandenberg Village location Thursday by section TV position KSBY, but refused to speak pinch a reporter. She besides did not respond to requests from The Times for comment.

Federal tribunal records show that Buzzard revenge for Chapter 7 bankruptcy successful 2017 and has had astatine slightest 5 collections cases for unpaid debts revenge against her successful Santa Barbara County Superior Court. This includes cases revenge against her by Capital One Bank successful May and December, and by Crown Asset Management past November.

Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Raquel Zick said that Melodee had antecedently been homeschooled for respective years. However, the California Department of Education has nary grounds of Buzzard filing a backstage schoolhouse affidavit, which is simply a request for homeschooling, according to section spokesperson Scott Roark.

According to a connection from the Lompoc Unified School District, Melodee and her mother visited Mission Valley Independent Study School to initiate her registration successful August. But Melodee past grounded to prime up assignments, prompting the schoolhouse to initiate outreach scope retired to her mother, and, ultimately, rule enforcement.

“Lompoc Unified School District deserves in installments for recognizing that thing wasn’t right, reaching out, and continuing to assistance pinch this investigation,” Sheriff’s Lt. Chris Gotschall said successful a statement. “This important update helps constrictive a important spread successful the timeline of erstwhile she was past known to beryllium seen and because of that, we’re person to knowing what happened to Melodee.”

Anyone pinch accusation about Melodee is asked to interaction the Sheriff’s Office astatine (805) 681-4150. Tips could besides beryllium near anonymously astatine (805) 681-4171 aliases astatine SBSheriff.org.