Once upon a time, Melinda Denise Hinson lived in Henderson, Kentucky, where she attended North Middle School. But about six months ago, Melinda moved with her mother Rhonda McNallin and older brother Cody to Panama City, Florida, to be with Rhonda’s boyfriend. I imagine moving from Henderson (which doesn’t exactly come across as cosmopolitan and trendy, no offense meant, Hendersonites) to Panama City would seem awesome to a 13-year-old girl. Sun and beaches and spring break, oh my. And from what we know, Melinda was in many ways an ordinary 13-year-old. According to her mother, Melinda had a broken cell phone on which she pretended to have conversations, which is exactly the kind of sweet naiveté you’d expect from a girl her age. Brother Cody (age 15) reported that “She liked to primp a lot” and when talking with people would often look past them to check out her reflection in a window. I remember being that age, so awkward and hopeful, wanting to be seen, wanting to be noticed. Unfortunately, she was seen. She was noticed. Last Tuesday, July 8th, Melinda had been back at the Valu-Lodge hotel, where the family was living, for about a week after vacationing with a friend. Early that evening, she left to walk the dog of a neighbor at the hotel. She was wearing jeans, flip flops, and a pale-colored shirt with lace. She never made it to the neighbor’s room.
Matthew Lee Caylor, 33, is a registered sex offender (aka “RSO”). According to his sex offender profile on the Georgia Bureau of Investigation’s Web site, he’s been an RSO since 2001 (another source puts the date at 1999). While he hasn’t exactly been a model citizen–he’s been arrested several times every year for nearly a decade (aggravated battery, failure to appear, theft, hit-and-run, making terrorist threats)–at least he’s kept his sorry ass in Georgia where authorities could keep some kind of eye on him.
Until last month, that is.
That’s when he headed down to Panama City, Florida. On June 28th, he checked into the Valu-Lodge hotel. Currently, the daily rate for a week stay at the Valu-Lodge is as low as about $38 a day, which is darn reasonable if you don’t mind being five miles from the beach. There’s no word on whether Caylor made a trip to the beach during his first few days at the Valu-Lodge. Maybe he took advantage of the hotel’s amenities and spent time by the pool or in the game room or caught up on his movie-viewing thanks to the free HBO. The hotel also features a picnic area and barbecue grills, but it seems unlikely a guy by himself would be out grilling or picnicking.
We pick up Matty-Boy’s trail the afternoon of Tuesday, July 8th. At about 4:00 p.m., the Bay County Sheriff’s Office responded to a call at a Panama City Beach condo complex. According to the two women living in the condo, they had invited in a casual acquaintance they knew as “Matt” when he stopped by. When one refused his invitation to a back bedroom, he attacked her then chased her into another room, where he physically assaulted both women, tried to duct tape them, and demanded money. They managed to force him out of the room, and he then proceeded to kick in a door, rip the phone out of the wall, and threaten them with an 8″ serrated knife. It wasn’t until they started screaming for help that Caylor finally got the hint and left. Yay for the neighbor who got a look at the vehicle and a partial license plate number.
With this information, police were able to issue a Be On the Lookout (BOLO) for the vehicle. It was spotted shortly after midnight. Although Caylor fled, police deployed spike strips to disable the vehicle, which had been reported stolen in Georgia. Caylor was placed into custody and transported to the Bay County Jail. What no one knew at the time was that his arrest came too late for Melinda Hinson.
There’s some disagreement over when the call reporting Melinda missing came in, but the radio log book for the Panama City Police shows it to be 8:10 p.m. Since there was no evidence of an abduction, an AMBER alert was not issued. Fliers were made up and posted around the area. Several were taped to the window of the Valu-Lodge room in which Melinda had been staying with her family. After arresting Matt Caylor, authorities were kind enough to let the folks at the Valu-Lodge know that he had other lodging arrangements, so on Wednesday, a truck driver by the name of Vince Wallace checked into Caylor’s former room–#140. Mr. Wallace noticed nothing out of the ordinary during his stay.
On Thursday, July 10th, Valu-Lodge housekeeping staff found the body of Melinda Hinson underneath a bed.
In room 140.
During an interview with police Thursday night, Matt Caylor confessed to killing Melinda. Actually, he confessed to a lot more than just killing her. Shortly after Melinda set out to walk the neighbor’s dog–and before anyone had any idea she was missing–Caylor raped her. Caylor also choked her. And when she struggled and tried to get away, he used a telephone cord to strangle her to death. He then put her body underneath the bed and, according to a detective with the Panama City PD, “placed the bed frame on her head.”
When you direct your browser to the Dreamin’ Demon, you see the title “Rubbernecking at its tackiest.” Looks like we have some stiff competition, though. Posters on some comment-enabled news sites are waxing poetic on what a shitty mother Rhonda McNallin has been–doesn’t keep a clean house, drags her kids to Florida to be with a boyfriend, etc. I just want to toss out a big “fuck you” to those posters. Fine, I get it, she wouldn’t get any awards for her maternal efforts. But Rhonda McNallin’s beautiful daughter was raped and strangled to death by a sex offender. While Rhonda McNallin was looking for her daughter, Melinda’s body lay undiscovered under a bed for a day a half just a short distance away. Rhonda McNallin will never see Melinda Hinson graduate from high school, get married, have babies. Guess Rhonda McNallin got what was coming to her, huh, assholes?
Me, I’m saving my rancor for Matthew Caylor. He’s being held without bond in the Bay County Jail.
Tags: Molestation, Murder, Pedophile, Rape, Sex Offender, Sexual Assault, Strangulation
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