The search for Melodee Buzzard has ended in tragedy, as her body was discovered nearly three months after she mysteriously vanished.

Neighbors captured footage of Ashlee Buzzard, Melodee’s mother, being led away in handcuffs by deputies from the Santa Barbara Sheriff’s Department early Tuesday morning. The arrest took place at her residence in Lompoc around 7:40 am.

Ashlee, identified by her short blonde hair, was dressed in jeans, a white t-shirt, and black heeled boots as she was escorted to a police vehicle.

Though it’s not confirmed whether her arrest is directly linked to her nine-year-old daughter’s disappearance in October, a neighbor who released the video mentioned that police forcibly entered her home after she failed to answer the door.

The Sheriff’s office has scheduled a press conference at 5 pm EST to provide more information about this significant development in the case.

Melodee was first reported missing by a school administrator on October 14, but she was last seen on camera with her mother on October 9.

Family members say that haven’t seen Melodee for over a year and expressed major concerns over her mother’s mental health.

Her mother Ashlee has refused to cooperate or even tell investigators anything about her daughter’s disappearance, so they have no idea where she is or if she is safe. 

Melodee Buzzard, 9, was barely seen since she stopped going to school a year ago. Her body has now been found

Her mother Ashlee refused to cooperate or even tell investigators anything about her daughter’s disappearance, so they have no idea where she is or if she is safe 

‘Ashlee Buzzard remains uncooperative and has not provided detectives with any information about Melodee’s current location or condition,’ police said in October.

‘The primary goal of this investigation is to verify the location and welfare of Melodee Buzzard and ensure that she is safe.’

Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office detectives said Melodee was with her mother as recently as October 7 and may have been driven all the way to Nebraska.

They were spotted making several stops, wearing wigs, in a rented white Chevrolet Malibu along the way, before Buzzard returned to Santa Barbara and gave the car back.

Sheriff’s investigators released information on the possible route the mother and daughter took from their Lompoc home and traveled more than 1,500 miles away to Nebraska.

Detectives believe the pair then started their trip back the next day, but the Malibu was spotted with a New York license plate, which authorities said did not belong to the rental or to Buzzard.

Investigators now believe the Malibu traveled through various small towns on October 9, including Green River, Utah; Panguitch, Utah; northwest Arizona; Primm, Nevada and Rancho Cucamonga, California.

Sheriff’s investigators said the mother and daughter traveled more than 1,500 miles away to Nebraska on October 7

The Daily Mail uncovered an eerie Google Maps image of Melodee staring into the street while standing on her doorstep in May 2023

Police searched their home (pictured) on Mars Avenue in Lompoc, about 60 miles north of Santa Barbara, but didn’t find Melodee 

Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office detectives said Melodee was with her mother as recently as October 7 and may have been driven all the way to Nebraska

Lizabeth Meza, Melodee’s aunt, previously told the Daily Mail that Buzzard had lost custody of Melodee in the past because of mental health woes and allegedly admitted psychological issues run in her family.

Buzzard at one point in time declared bankruptcy after amassing debts totaling $23,000.

‘There were so many hurdles, just so much going on within the family,’ Meza said in tears.

‘And it just saddens me that there was so much going on at that time that we weren’t able to keep in contact with Melodee, and nobody had a relationship with her.

‘The system failed her by giving her back to a mother time and time again when she was unstable. There is just so many emotions that go through my mind when I think of that little girl.’

This is a breaking news story.