Asha Degree was a 9 year old young girl who went missing from her home in Shelby, North Carolina in 2000. Though several people recall seeing her walking down a highway in the early morning hours of the day she disappeared, Asha has not been seen since and her disappearance has remained a mystery for over 21 years.
Asha Jaquila Degree was born on August 5, 1990 in Shelby, North Carolina to her parents Harold and Iquilla Degree, whom were married on Valentines Day in 1988. Asha had a brother who was about a year older than her named O’Bryant. The Degree family lived in a rural area on the western edge of the Charlotte metropolitan area north of Shelby, North Carolina. While their parents worked, Asha and O’Bryant would typically let themselves in their home after school and work on or complete their school work by the time their parents returned from work.
The Degree children were brought up in a family that centered around their extended family, church, and school, to keep them away from any outside influences. The children’s parents also did not allow them to watch tv or use internet based on the pedophilia that began to increase through these forms of media in the early 2000s. They said that Asha followed these rules well, which made it more surprising upon investigating her disappearance.
On February 11, 2000, because the schools in the district that the children attended were closed, Asha and her brother went to go stay with their aunt while their parents worked. The next day, the children both had basketball games at their schools. Although Asha seemed upset at her team’s loss, she quickly got over and continued to watch the other games.
On February 13, 2000, the children left from a relative’s house to attend church. After church was over, the children returned to their own home. At about 8 P.M., Asha and O’Bryant went to bed in their sharing room. The neighborhood power went out after a car accident at about 9P.M., but turned back on at about 12:30A.M. When the power came back on, the childrens’ father went into their room to check on them, to which they both were sleeping. He checked again before going to bed at about 2:30A.M. to see the children still sleeping.
A little while after this, O’Bryant recalls hearing Asha’s bed making a squeaking noise as if she were moving around. However, Asha had actually gotten out of bed, taken a book bag that she had previously packed with clothing and personal items, and then left the house. Sometime between 3:45-4:15 A.M., a truck driver and motorist recall seeing her walking along Highway 18, north of its junction of Highway 180. After later seeing a TV report about Asha’s disappearance, the two people reported this to police. The motorist said that he even turned around to check on Asha because he found it strange that such a young child was walking out by herself so early. He then said she ran into some nearby woods and did not see her again. It was also stated that Asha was possibly seen getting into a dark green colored early 1970s Lincoln Mark IV or a Ford Thunderbird upon further investigation.
When the rest of the Degree family woke up on February 14, 2000, which was also Harold and Iquilla’s 12th wedding anniversary, Iquilla went to go get O’Bryant and Asha up for school, where she discovered that Asha was not in her bed. She checked the whole house, and subsequently found that Asha was missing. Harold’s mother lived right across the street, so they went to check if she was there, but she was not.
By 6:40 A.M. the police were out and police dogs were brought out to help with the search for Asha. Family, friends, and neighbors all joined in the search to help look for Asha. Church members also came to the family’s home to offer the family support as well. Asha’s disappearance quickly received lots of local media coverage and the search for her became huge. The FBI eventually became involved in the search and investigation of Asha.
On February 15, some candy wrappers were found in a shed at a nearby business nearby where Asha was seen running into the woods. There was also a pencil, marker, and a Mickey Mouse-shaped hair bow that belonged to Asha. There was also a photo of a young black girl, who looked to be about Asha’s age, but is said to not be Asha. The search for Asha was called off after about a week, but investigators kept following new leads.
At first, investigators believed that Asha had runaway, as it seemed that she had packed and planned to leave. However, many people did not believe this as Asha was such a young child. Over a year later on August 3, 2001, Asha’s book bag and other items that she took with her were found wrapped in a plastic bag during a construction project off of Highway 18 in Burke County, about 26 miles north of Shelby. Inside the bag also contained Asha’s name and phone number.
Many of the leads that investigators have gotten have led to dead ends. However, this does not stop their search for Asha. Asha’s family also keep her story alive by hosting annual walks along the road in which Asha was last seen in order to help fund their ongoing search for Asha. There have also been multiple facial reconstructions that have been made of Asha in hopes that some may be able to recognize her. Asha’s mother still has incredibly high hopes that Asha is still alive and living out in the world, but someone must know of her disappearance.
Based on Asha’s age and upbringing, I don’t think she would’ve chosen to just runaway all by herself. I theorize that someone older she knew probably persuaded her to leave her home and then abducted her. This really narrows it down because her family was said to be very centered and kept to the people around them, such as family, school mates, and church members. But this is just a theory. Who knows was happened to Asha Degree? With the evidence that investigators already have and new advanced technology, I believe there is absolutely a great chance for investigators to find the new evidence they need to locate Asha and bring her home.
Resources-
TRUE CRIME REPORT 