SHELBY, N.C. — Asha Degree, a shy 9-year-old girl from Shelby, North Carolina, disappeared in the middle of Valentine's Day night 24 years ago.
The fourth-grader's disappearance shook the rural community and remains a mystery today.
The Cleveland County Sheriff's Office reminded the community how the department's search will not stop until they locate Asha, whom they often call "Cleveland County's Sweetheart."
"February 14th will be 24 years since 9-year-old Asha Degree disappeared," Cleveland County Sheriff's Office wrote on Facebook. "The Cleveland County Sheriff's Office, the FBI, and the SBI will never stop looking for Asha. Our hearts go out to her family who misses her greatly. We are working tirelessly to #FindAsha. If you have information, call the Sheriff's Office at 704-484-4822 or the FBI at 1-800 CALL FBI or online at tips.fbi.gov."
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Investigators said Asha disappeared from her bedroom sometime between 2:30 a.m. and 6:30 a.m. on Feb. 14, 2000. There was no sign of forced entry and no promising scent trail for search dogs to follow. Investigators received at least two reports from people who said they saw a young female walking along Highway 18 around 4 a.m. One person said they went back to check on her, and the girl disappeared into the woods.
"After 20 years, I still believe my daughter is alive," Iquilla Degree, Asha's mother, said in 2020. "I do not believe she is dead. And I know someone knows something. I'm not crazy enough to think that a 9-year-old can disappear into thin air without somebody knowing something."
Glenda Kimble, Asha's aunt, said she still remembers February 14, 2000 like it was yesterday, recalling the conversation she had with family that night.
“It was cold. Foggy. Raining a little bit that day. And like I told her, it's gonna get better, we can find her before dark fall. But we didn't know I don't understand why we couldn't find her," Kimble said.
There is still a $45,000 award being offered for any information that may lead to finding her. The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children created an age-progressed photo, which shows Degree as she would look as a 29-year-old woman.
"It's not a cold case," Cleveland County Detective Tim Adams said. "We're not going to let it go. This is something we really feel like can be solved, and we're determined to solve it."
"No one has forgotten about Asha; not myself, not the sheriff's office, not the community," Cleveland County Sheriff Alan Norman, who was a lieutenant when Asha went missing, said.
According to the CCSO, investigators have received more than 700 tips since she went missing and new technology is aiding in the search.
"There's been so many cases not only here, but across the nation that have actually recently, within the past days to a couple years that have actually been solved due to new technology that's out," Norman said. "I truly feel like that progress has been made and I have high hopes that it's going to be solved. We're going to have some answers for the family.”
While time can complicate the process to find individuals connected to the case, Alan Nanavaty with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, said continuing to discuss the story could bring new leads.
"Continuing to have it in the public eye so that individuals who may have information feel more comfortable to just come forward and say, you know, I had this thought about this, but never really thought it would be valuable, but as time goes on any information is valuable in these cases," Nanavaty said. "Sometimes, like the technology we use for age progressions and getting the image out there. ... Some individuals have been found many years later and the age progression contributed to the public coming up with a tip."
As the search enters a new year, Norman emphasized their commitment to finding answers and arresting anyone involved.
"We're asking you to come forward because, eventually, we're going to find you," Norman said. "And we're going to bring you to justice."
Anyone with information about Asha can call 704-672-6100.
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