• Mother detained on charge of killing her 9-year-old daughter
• Child’s body found by roadside months after disappearance

U.S. authorities have arrested the mother of a 9-year-old girl after her body was found in the state of Utah, on charges of murder.

Police stated that the decomposed body of Melodee Buzzard was discovered by a man and a woman who were taking photographs in a rural area earlier this month.

The Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office reported that the child’s mother, 40-year-old Ashlee Buzzard, has been taken into custody for first-degree murder, noting that she had not cooperated with investigations since her daughter went missing.

County Sheriff Bill Brown said: “This is an extremely tragic case involving the killing of a child at the hands of the person she relied on and trusted more than anyone else.”

He added that Melodee Buzzard was first reported missing by her school on October 14, having not been seen since August.

Investigations indicate that the girl was last seen on October 9 when a surveillance camera at the Colorado-Utah border captured her with her mother.

Authorities believe the child was killed shortly after this last sighting, confirming that they have recovered strong evidence clearly indicating the mother’s involvement in the crime.

Police stated that the body, found by the roadside and showing gunshot wounds, was identified through DNA analysis.

Ashlee Buzzard had previously been arrested in November on charges of false imprisonment after someone claimed they were assisting in the search for her daughter, though the charge was later dropped by a judge.