An 11-day search for a Dickson County woman seemingly ended horribly when a body matching her description was discovered in New Johnsonville over the weekend. Humphreys County Sheriff Chris Davis said out of respect for the family and the investigation, he wouldn’t get into details; however, he did confirm the identity of the body matched that of Melanie Vineyard.
Vineyard was reported missing on July 2. She was last seen that Tuesday morning leaving her residence in a black 2008 Chevy Equinox. A vehicle matching that description was parked in the Pebble Isle parking lot for several days when witnesses say a stench caused them to alert authorities.
An eyewitness that asked to remain anonymous said the vehicle had been parked on the same spot for well over a week. According to the witness, car floor mats were covering the front windshield and the other windows were “blacked-out.” Many people were visiting the marina with the arrival of Columbus replica ships. Someone reportedly noticed a smell coming from the parked Chevrolet.
Authorities found the lifeless body of a female in the vehicle late on Saturday evening around 9:30 p.m. Davis said the scene was grim and foul play was not suspected.
Davis said should forensics confirm the identity being Vineyard, all that could be offered would be prayers. He stated, “All we can do now is turn the body over to forensics and pray for the entire family. If it in fact turns out to be Vineyard, it will be a terrible ending to a missing person’s search and definitely not how we like to see them end.”
