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27-year-old Meshay Melendez and her daughter Layla Stewart, 7, who went missing on March 12, were found dead on Wednesday.
Authorities mentioned that the Clark County Medical Examiner’s Office is yet to determine the manner and cause of death of the mother-daughter duo. The remains of Meshay Melendez and her daughter were reportedly spotted by a passer-by, who thought they were “life-sized mannequins.”
The bodies were discovered at around 9.40 am on Wednesday down an embankment in Washougal. The Vancouver Police Department was soon notified of the situation.
Authorities further said that they recognized that the bodies belonged to the missing mother-daughter duo, by their “unique identifying genetic marks.”
Police are currently investigating the tragic deaths of Meshay Melendez and her young daughter. They also have a person of interest, that is Meshay’s ex-beau Kirkland Warren. He was arrested and faced several charges including tampering with a witness and a drive-by shooting.
Missing woman Meshay Melendez and her daughter were found dead by a passer-by on Wednesday
Meshay Melendez and her 7-year-old daughter Layla were last seen on March 12, 2023, after which they disappeared. The case took a tragic turn when the mother-daughter duo was found dead on Wednesday in Washougal. Police are considering Melendez’s ex-boyfriend Kirkland Warren as a person of interest.
A witness also reported to police that they saw Meshay in Warren’s car. It was discovered that Warren was taken into custody prior to this case for allegedly assaulting Meshay.
He was also ordered not to make any contact with the 27-year-old woman. The police arrested him on March 19 on several charges including tampering with a witness, fourth-degree assault, drive-by shooting, unlawful possession of a firearm, and violation of domestic violence orders.
Before Meshay Melendez and her daughter’s disappearance, police took Warren into custody for allegedly assaulting the woman physically and shooting her back in December 2022.
Law enforcement officials further revealed that Warren had then threatened to kill Melendez. According to the prosecutors, he was an “extreme risk” to Meshay. On March 10, he was released from jail, and two days later, the mother-daughter duo went missing.
Police seized Meshay’s car after her mother discovered it
A thorough investigation revealed that Meshay, Layla, and Warren were staying at an acquaintance’s residence around the time of the disappearance. A witness claimed to have seen Meshay in Warren’s car on march 12, and mentioned that she was “unresponsive and naked from the waist down.”
Police discovered that Warren had a criminal record. Back in 2018, he was arrested on charges of murder and abuse of a corpse and was later released on bond.
The search for the mother-daughter duo came to an end on Wednesday when a passer-by spotted them and called law enforcement officers. A welfare check was done on March 18 at Meshay’s home, where cops discovered that she and her daughter had not been home for a few days.
On March 19, her mother located her car, soon after which police seized it. That was when they took Meshay’s ex-boyfriend into custody.
The case is an ongoing investigation, and the police are trying to discover more about the disappearance and the mysterious deaths of Meshay Melendez and her daughter Layla.
