Nebraska State Patrol assisting FBI in search for missing California girl

LINCOLN, Neb. (KLKN) – Authorities in Nebraska are aiding in the search for a girl who went missing from California earlier this month.

A spokesman with the Nebraska State Patrol said the agency is assisting the FBI in the search for 9-year-old Melodee Buzzard.

The Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office in California said Buzzard was last seen with her mother as recently as Oct. 7.

Investigators determined that her mother, Ashlee Buzzard, may have driven her in a white Chevy Malibu to “locations outside of Santa Barbara County to include as far as the state of Nebraska.”

The sheriff’s office noted that Ashlee has been “uncooperative” with detectives regarding Melodee’s “current location or condition.”

“The primary goal of this investigation is to verify the location and welfare of Melodee Buzzard and ensure that she is safe,” the sheriff’s office said in a press release.

Anyone who might have seen Melodee — or has had contact with Ashlee since Oct. 7 — is asked to call the sheriff’s office at 805-681-4150.