Melinda Brown had no idea that her goodbye to her parents on the night of November 15, 1998 would be her last one. Melinda left her home to party that night and never returned. She left her home around 7 p.m. to attend a house party in Simi Valley, California.
The party, however, was shut down by the police around 10:30 p.m. because of noise complaints from neighbors. Melinda and some other friends then went to another apartment, which was not that far from the original party house.
Talking about the group, Ventura County Sheriff’s Office Sgt. Craig Hennes told PEOPLE, “It was a smaller gathering. They continued to party for a few more hours there.” Trouble began when Melinda did not return home that night. A missing person’s report was filed after she did not show up for her shift at In-N-Out Burger on November 17.
As the investigation began, Melinda’s remains were found “next to a shallow grave a couple hundred yards off a popular dirt road in the Hungry Valley area of Los Padres National Forest near Gorman” as reported by PEOPLE. Hennes explained, “There was a lot of animal activity. It looked like some of the wildlife had unearthed her and dragged her out of the shallow grave.”
Melinda was shot in the back as revealed by authorities. For the last 27 years, the case has remained unsolved and the final activities of Melinda before her death continue to puzzle the police. According to witnesses, she was dropped off at a local liquor store about half a mile away from her home at around 1 a.m. after the second party.
However, Hennes remains skeptical about this information as he said, “But what we can gather is that the liquor store was closed.” Kathryn Torres, a senior deputy with the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office shared Hennes’ skepticism as she added, “We don’t have any witnesses that actually placed her at that liquor store.”
The exact place of Melinda’s killing also remains undetermined. Talking about the same, Hennes said, “All indications are that she was murdered and then transported and left in Gorman, but we don’t know that. We don’t know where the homicide scene is.” Moreover, the fact that there are no signs of abduction makes the case further complicated and also hints at the possibility that Melinda was killed by someone she knew.
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Providing more details about the case, Hennes said, “We’re suspicious of the people that last saw her. And that’s where the original investigation ran into a lot of roadblocks. There was not a lot of information or cooperation at that time with that friend group.”
Hannes also added, “Right now, we believe it was somebody that knew her,” says Hennes. “We don’t believe it was a drifter or some random person that just happened to come into town. We believe that Melinda knew the person that killed her, and we’re trying to prove that right now.”
He also encouraged people to come forward with any information, saying, “People didn’t want to talk back then, but maybe, we’re hoping, now 30 years forward … people have lived their life, and they have children of their own that maybe they would feel now is the time to come forward and say something.”
Torres emphasized the evolution of DNA technology and how it might help, adding, “When the crime scene was being processed, a lot of DNA samples were taken. And we are now beginning to submit those again for updated processing. We have trace evidence we’re still processing that we are optimistic will lead us to a suspect DNA profile.”
As reported by PEOPLE, “Anyone with information about the case of Melinda Brown is asked to contact Ventura County Sheriff’s Major Crimes Unit at: (805) 383-8739 or email the Ventura County Sheriff’s Major Crimes Unit at: [email protected]. If you wish to remain anonymous, contact Ventura County Crime Stoppers at (800) 222-8477 or visit www.venturacountycrimestoppers.org to submit a tip via text or email.”
