California Girl Disappearance: New Security Footage Suggests Clever Disguise Tactics

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On Friday, the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office unveiled new images capturing a young girl, believed to be the missing 9-year-old Melodee Buzzard, disguised with a wig at a car rental agency before she and her mother left the state.

These surveillance photos represent the first fresh visuals of Melodee in over two years, providing crucial insights into the sequence of events leading up to her designation as an at-risk missing person by authorities.

The Sheriff’s Office revealed that on October 7, Melodee and her mother, Ashlee Buzzard, rented a vehicle and embarked on a journey across the country. This occurred a week before school officials flagged Melodee’s “prolonged absence,” prompting her missing person report.

Images captured inside the rental facility depict the girl, presumed to be Melodee, clad in a gray sweatshirt with the hood pulled up, concealing straight, black hair. Investigators suspect that the girl wore a wig to mask her appearance, given that earlier photographs depict her with naturally brown, curly locks.

Missing Santa Barbara County girl Melodee Buzzard is believed to be seen in this Oct. 7, 2025, photo taken at a car rental business prior to departing on a road trip with her mother. (Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office))
Missing Santa Barbara County girl Melodee Buzzard is believed to be seen in this Oct. 7, 2025, photo taken at a car rental business prior to departing on a road trip with her mother. (Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office))

Ashlee Buzzard, officials added, has been known to regularly wear wigs.

The rental vehicle, a white Chevrolet Malibu with the license plate number 9MNG101, has been tracked to as far east as Nebraska, with the return trip including the state of Kansas.

Investigators say Ashlee returned to the family’s home on Oct. 10 without her daughter. The rental car has since been returned to the same rental company.

Melodee was reported missing days later on Oct. 14, and her mother has purportedly not cooperated with the investigation and has not provided an explanation or a satisfactory answer for her daughter’s whereabouts or condition.

The day after she was reported missing, authorities served a search warrant at the family’s home and surrounding areas in Vandenberg Village in northern Santa Barbara County. The FBI was looped into the investigation days later.

Despite her lack of cooperation and inability to provide a satisfactory answer to where her daughter is, Ashlee Buzzard has not been arrested or taken into custody.

The search, meanwhile, continues.

“Our detectives are following every lead in this case. We continue to seek information from the public that could help us find Melodee,” said Santa Barbara County Sheriff Bill Brown. “We remain determined to bring her home safely.”

Melodee Buzzard of Lompoc is seen in this undated photo provided by the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office. Buzzard has not been seen in at least a year, and hasn’t been photographed in at least two.

Melodee is described as being around 4 feet 6 inches and weighing around 60 pounds. She has brown hair and brown eyes. In the newly released security images, she’s seen wearing a gray hoodie, vibrant patterned leggings and black sneakers.

Officials are also urging the public not to attempt to conduct their own “searches or investigations,” as that could only complicate and disrupt ongoing efforts by law enforcement.

Anyone who has seen Melodee Buzzard, or has had contact with her mother since Oct. 7, is urged to contact the Sheriff’s Criminal Investigations Division at 805-681-4150. Anonymous tips can be provided online or by calling 805-681-4171.