Melanie Jo Melanson was 14 years old when she walked away from a party near the Woburn-Stoneham line on the evening of October 27, 1989, and never came home. Thirty-seven years to the day later, the Woburn Police Department is again asking the public for any information that might finally explain what happened to her. She has not been seen or heard from since that night, and her case remains unsolved.
The Woburn Police Department is investigating Melanson's disappearance, and investigators are seeking new leads in a case that has haunted the city for nearly four decades. According to WCVB, Melanson was last seen at a party and never returned home, a detail the station reported alongside the fact that she had braces on her teeth at the time she vanished. The Charley Project adds that the gathering took place at an industrial park near the Woburn/Stoneham line, according to charleyproject.org.
Investigators have released an age-progressed image showing what Melanson might look like at 42, the station reported. On the official missing-person poster circulated by police, she is listed as 51 years old, reflecting her age had she lived to the present day; her case carries NCIC number M878550421 and NCMEC number 732768. Anyone who sees her is directed to call 911 or 1-800-THE-LOST, per the poster.
Decades of Searches With No Resolution
The hunt for Melanson has repeatedly brought investigators back into the woods and yards around Woburn. In 2009, authorities excavated land behind the old Atlantic Gelatin plant off Montvale Avenue near the Stoneham line, according to homenewshere.com. Three years later, cadaver-sniffing dogs searched portions of the Middlesex Fells Reservation, but that effort failed to produce actionable leads, the outlet reported.
A more recent search focused on a Woburn backyard, where forensic anthropologist Dr. Ann Marie Mires directed what was described as a methodical grid search involving Mission for the Missing and Forensic Archeology Recovery, according to Boston 25 News. Ground-penetrating radar signals that bounced back suggested something could be buried there, the station reported. Separately, a 2012 search yielded about three dozen evidence bags but no results, WCVB reported. The same report noted that dogs had previously found evidence of decomposition at the site, which was confirmed by soil tests.
Police Believe Foul Play Was Involved
Police believe Melanson was the victim of foul play and that she remains in the general area, according to the Charley Project. No one has ever been arrested or charged in connection with her disappearance, per the family's case website, melaniemelanson.com.
Public attention to the case was renewed after a retrospective by the true-crime podcast Murders in Massachusetts, as homenewshere.com reported. In response, the station noted that Melanson's family launched a new website, melaniemelanson.com, where community members can also leave completely anonymous tips. Her cousins are behind a new push to find her, according to Boston 25 News, working to keep the case visible nearly four decades on.
Family Builds Toward a $250,000 Reward
The family has also launched a GoFundMe campaign to offer a substantial reward for credible information that directly leads to locating Melanson's remains or solving her case, homenewshere.com reported. The fundraiser describes an initial goal of $50,000, with the ultimate objective of building a reward of up to $250,000, according to the GoFundMe page itself. At the time of one report, the family said they had raised over $3,000 toward that goal, per homenewshere.com.
Contact information for tips has varied across different accounts of the case. WCVB reported that people with information are urged to contact Detective Mark Roffi at 781-933-1212, extension 4854, while the family's melaniemelanson.com lists the tip line as 781-933-1212, extension 4547, and Boston 25 News has reported the Woburn Police tip line as 781-933-1212, extension 153. The official missing-person poster lists the Woburn Police Department's general number as 1-781-933-1212, with sightings directed to 911 or 1-800-THE-LOST.
