As National Missing Children’s Day approached, the Cleveland County Sheriff’s Office released a new video about the disappearance of Asha Degree.
In the video, her family can be seen looking through photo albums, a camera pans around the area where the 9-year-old was last seen in Fallston 24 years ago, and the sheriff urges anyone with information to come forward.
“Eventually, we’re going to find you, and we’re going to bring you to justice if you don’t come forward,” Sheriff Alan Norman said in the video.
The narrator of the video said, “The Cleveland County Sheriff’s Office is asking you to pray. Pray for Asha, her family, this community and our investigative team.”
While National Missing Children’s Day has come and gone this year, Asha remains on the minds of investigators and the community.
“We will never stop searching for Asha,” the newly released video said.
Asha vanished after leaving her Fallston home before dawn on Feb. 14, 2000. She has since been dubbed "Shelby's Sweetheart."
Investigators have periodically given updates to the public and continue to field tips and offer a $45,000 reward for information that leads to finding her.
In an interview earlier this year, Norman said as technology advances, investigators have more tools now than ever to solve the case. He also mentioned that new evidence has been collected in the past 24 months.
Here is a timeline of events in Asha Degree’s disappearance and the ongoing investigation:
Feb. 14, 2000
2:30 a.m.: Asha’s father checks on her.
3:15 a.m.: Asha is seen walking on N.C. 18 toward Shelby by a truck driver.
6 a.m.: Asha is reported missing.
Feb. 23, 2000
The physical search for Asha is called off.
2001
Asha’s backpack is found buried along N.C. 18 in Burke County.
2014
Law enforcement believes they have a suspect, but it leads to another dead end.
2016
The FBI and Cleveland County Sheriff’s Office release information about a car that Asha may have gotten into on the night she disappeared. The vehicle is described as an early 1970s Lincoln Mark IV or a Ford Thunderbird, dark green, with rust around the wheel wells.
2017
In an effort to generate new leads, the Cleveland County Sheriff’s Office, the State Bureau of Investigation and the North Carolina office of the FBI partners with the Child Abduction Rapid Deployment team out of the FBI’s main office in Washington.
2018
The Sheriff’s Office releases a video reviewing the Degree case and asks for information about new items of interest found by the FBI child abduction team, including the Dr. Seuss book “McElligot’s Pool” and a New Kids on the Block concert T-shirt.
2020
The FBI releases an updated photo of what Asha Degree may look like today.
Later in the year, Marcus Mellon, a prison inmate, wrote a letter to The Star to say that he knew how the child was killed and where to find her.
2021
Delayed by COVID restrictions, investigators interviewed Mellon and said his claims did not have merit.
Police ask that anyone with information is asked to call or 704-484-4832.
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