Tenn. Counselor Killed Inside Center Where She Worked: ‘She Was Funny and Loved,’ Says Husband
A Tennessee counselor was found murdered inside her workplace Wednesday morning — shortly after her husband reported her missing.
The body of Melissa Hamilton, 50, was discovered with “obvious signs of trauma” in a counseling room inside Crossroads Counseling Center, which provides domestic violence, alcohol and drug treatment counseling, in Madison, about 10 miles outside of Nashville, around 6 a.m., Metropolitan Nashville police spokeswoman Kris Mumford tells PEOPLE.
The motive remains under investigation and a suspect or suspects are still at large, she says.
“Right now, investigators are working leads, but at this time, there is not a specific suspect description,” Mumford says. “A lot of people are working diligently to make an arrest. It is very tragic.”
The mother of two, who was the assistant director at the facility, was last seen Tuesday night at Crossroads holding a group counseling session that ended at 7:30 p.m. “She was known to have counseling sessions after those group meetings at night,” says Mumford. “She would stay after, but how late is unknown.”
Mumford says investigators are reviewing surveillance video from the area.
“There was not video surveillance at Crossroads Counseling,” she says.
There were no signs of forced entry or any indication that she had been robbed, Mumford says.
Hamilton’s vehicle, a Ford Focus, was found parked near the front door of Crossroads.
Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Sign up for PEOPLE’s free True Crime newsletter for breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases.
The case came to light Wednesday morning when Hamilton’s husband contacted police after he awoke and found that she had not returned home.
“He woke up, was alarmed and called us at 6 in the morning,” Mumford says.
Her cause of death has yet to be determined.
Anyone with information about Hamilton’s murder is asked to contact Emergency Communications at 615-862-8600 or Crime Stoppers at 615-742-7463. Crime Stoppers is offering $1,000 for information leading to the arrest of the person responsible.
