< Back to front page Text size – +

Police search Woburn woods in probe of girl's 1989 disappearance

E-mail|Link|Comments () September 24, 2009 07:47 PM

By John R. Ellement, Globe Staff

WOBURN -– State and Woburn police today searched a wooded area along the banks of the Aberjona River, a short distance from where a 14-year-old Woburn High School student disappeared nearly 20 years ago, as part of what authorities would only describe as an "ongoing investigation," according to a source with knowledge of the investigation.

Melanie Melanson

Melanie Melanson has not been seen since Oct. 27, 1989 when she was with friends in the heavily wooded area near Interstate 93 that was, and still is, a teenage hangout. According to her family, she was five days shy of her 15 birthday.

Corey Welford, spokesman for Middlesex District Attorney Gerard T. Leone Jr., would neither nor confirm nor deny that investigators have resumed searching for Melanson's remains, something they have done periodically over the years, but said state and Woburn police are acting as part of an "ongoing investigation."

One of Melanson’s aunts, MaryAnn Masciulli, said in a telephone interview that she was not aware of any renewed effort to find her niece. But she stressed that prosecutors and police have a long-standing agreement with her family – they only provide information when they have "something concrete" to share.

“When it’s something concrete and they are sure of it, they will contact us,’’ Masciulli said.

Melanson's parents have both died as did the grandmother who was caring for the teen at the time of her disappearance. In the interview, Masciulli said that part of the pain her family continues to feel lies in not knowing what happened to her.

"We can't have the funeral and get some closure," said Masiculli, who believes Melanson is dead.

She added, "Just say a prayer for us that we can finally find her and give her the resting place that deserves. That's our goal."

In May, Masciulli joined Leone in the woods near where Melanson disappeared, where the prosecutor announced that $5,000 in reward money was available to help solve the case. Welford would neither confirm nor deny whether the search now underway grew out of a tip provided by someone seeking to claim the reward money.

The search on the grounds of what is now a subsidiary of Kraft Foods, but was then known as the American Gelatin plant, got underway on Wednesday, according to the source. The area being searched is at the rear of the sprawling parcel on Hill Street, off Montvale Avenue and just one block off Interstate 93.

The Kraft parcel, including nearly an acre of densely wooded land, totals nearly 59 acres, according to Woburn town records. A security guard at the entrance of the Kraft factory said the company was not permitting the media onto their property and referred questions to Leone’s office.