NEED TO KNOW

Melinda Brown, 18, was last seen after a house party in Simi Valley, Calif. on Nov. 15, 1998

Her remains were found next to a shallow grave a couple hundred yards off a popular dirt road in the Hungry Valley area of Los Padres National Forest near Gorman

"We believe that Melinda knew the person that killed her, and we're trying to prove that right now," Ventura County Sheriff’s Office Sgt. Craig Hennes tells PEOPLE

On the night of Nov. 15, 1998, Melinda Brown said goodbye to her parents around 7 p.m. and set off to a house party in Simi Valley, Calif.

Later that night, around 10:30 p.m., local police broke up the party because of neighborhood complaints about the noise. Brown, 18, and a group of friends ended up at an apartment complex close to where the original party wa

See Full Page