January 25, 1977. Lexington, Kentucky. 24-year old Melanie Flynn leaves her workplace, but fails to show up for an appointment and does not return home for dinner with her family. Two weeks later, Melanie’s abandoned car is discovered in an apartment complex parking lot and her purse is found washed up next to the Kentucky River later that summer. After numerous eyewitnesses claim to have seen Melanie alive in Florida, the police close the investigation, but her family is convinced she was murdered. Over the years, rumours circulate that Melanie worked as an undercover informant for the narcotics squad and was killed by corrupt police officers who were involved in drug trafficking. The story eventually balloons into a mammoth scandal known as the “Bluegrass Conspiracy”, but no trace of Melanie is ever found. This week’s episode of “The Trail Went Cold” explores a convoluted missing persons case which may have been connected to a multi-million-dollar drug smuggling ring.

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Additional Reading:

http://charleyproject.org/case/melanie-dee-flynn

“The Bluegrass Conspiracy: An Inside Story of Power, Greed, Drugs and Murder” by Sally Denton

https://www.kentucky.com/news/local/crime/article232423297.html

https://www.newspapers.com/image/101002756/

https://www.newspapers.com/image/110786699/

https://www.newspapers.com/image/110800054/

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“The Trail Went Cold” is now doing a weekly livestream show on GetVokl every Thursday from 7:00-8:00 PM ET as part of their “True Crime Thursday” line-up. For more information, please visit their website.

The Trail Went Cold is produced and edited by Magill Foote.

All music is composed by Vince Nitro.