Credit: Mason County Sheriff’s Office
After spending the last two years reviewing the cold case murder of a teen, detectives with the Mason County Sheriff’s Office (Michigan) gathered enough information to make it necessary to exhume the girl’s body in hopes of solving the case.
On June 23, 1993, 15-year-old Melissa “Missy” Simmons was last seen at a Westco gas station in Scottville, Michigan. Three days later, her body was found in the Pere Marquette River in Custer Township.
“As the lone remaining member of the Mason County Sheriff’s Office, from the day Melissa went missing, this case has haunted me since that time,” said Mason County Sheriff Kim Cole.
Thus, two years ago, Cole asked two detectives to take another look at the case. In the course of roughly 730 days, the detectives reexamined every piece of evidence from the original investigation. They created a timeline surrounding Simmons’ disappearance, reinterviewed witnesses, eliminated individuals, followed up on tips and conducted over 100 new interviews—including people who had never been interviewed before. Their efforts yielded success: the detectives developed new persons of interest and found additional evidence.
In fact, the evidence was so compelling that one of the detectives flew to West Virginia to hand deliver the evidence to a forensic lab there. Upon analysis, the crime lab was able to establish a DNA profile. Cold said additional testing continues.
Armed with a DNA profile not previously available, Cole and the Mason County Sheriff’s Office determined it necessary to exhume Simmons’ body on August 9.
“While the decision was not taken lightly, it was the right one to do,” said Cole. “In my 40-year career I can’t recall ever exhuming a body here in Mason County. This action was based on information gathered over the past couple years. I will not be sharing what information is in order to protect the integrity of this investigation.”
Cole is asking any one who knew Simmons and interacted with her in the days before her disappearance, or had contact with her after her disappearance, to contact the police department.
“Even if you spoke with investigators in 1993,” Cole said. “We want to make sure we have as much information as possible. Every detail matters. We will continue with our efforts for as long as it takes to seek justice for Missy, her family and our community.”
If you have any information about the case, call 231-843-3475 and speak to Detective Sergeant Kenney or Detective Boyd.