Missing Person Photos
A missing person is a person who has disappeared and whose status as alive or dead cannot be confirmed as their location and condition are unknown. A person may go missing through a voluntary disappearance, or else due to an accident, crime, death in a location where they cannot be found (such as at sea), or many other reasons. In most parts of the world, a missing person will usually be found quickly. While criminal abductions are some of the most widely reported missing person cases, these account for only 2 to 5 percent of missing children in Europe.
By contrast, some missing person cases remain unresolved for many years. Laws related to these cases are often complex since, in many jurisdictions, relatives and third parties may not deal with a person's assets until their death is considered proven by law and a formal death certificate issued. The situation, uncertainties, and lack of closure or a funeral resulting when a person goes missing may be extremely painful with long-lasting effects on family and friends.
A number of organizations seek to connect, share best practices, and disseminate information and images of missing children to improve the effectiveness of missing children investigations, including the International Commission on Missing Persons, the International Centre for Missing & Exploited Children (ICMEC), as well as national organizations, including the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children in the US, Missing People in the UK, Child Focus in Belgium, and The Smile of the Child in Greece.
Resources for Missing Persons
According to current statistics, 4,000 people in the United States go missing every day.
Sometimes a child suddenly vanishes from the bus stop or the local park or even from their own yard or bedroom. Or a teenager doesn�t return home after a walk to the neighborhood grocery store or a bike ride or a party with friends.
Other times, an adult is mysteriously absent from their job or neighbors haven�t seen them for several days, and family and friends haven�t heard from them either.
Missing Person Photos
Asha Jaquilla Degree
Asha, date, approximate 2000; Age-progression to age 29 (date, approximate 2019); Evidence from Asha's disappearance; 1973 Lincoln Mark IV; 1973 Ford Thunderbird
Date Missing 02/14/2000
Missing From
Shelby, North Carolina
Missing Classification Endangered Missing
Sex Female
Race
Black
Date of Birth 08/05/1990 (32)
Age 9 years old
Height and Weight 4'6, 60 pounds
Clothing/Jewelry Description Possibly a white nightshirt with a teddy bear on it, acid-wash or white jeans, and white size 3 Nike sneakers. Carrying a Tweety bird purse and a black backpack.
Associated Vehicle(s) Dark green early 1970s model Lincoln Mark IV or Ford Thunderbird with rust around the wheel wells
Markings and/or Distinguishing Characteristics African-American female. Black hair, brown eyes. Asha may style her hair in pigtails. Her name is pronounced "Ay-sha."
Details of Disappearance Asha resided with her family in an apartment on Oakcrest Street in Shelby, North Carolina in 2000. She was last seen inside her home at approximately 2:30 a.m. on February 14, 2000. Asha's father went to sleep at that time and told authorities his daughter was asleep in her bed when he checked on her.
Asha shared a room with her older brother, who stated that he heard noises during the early morning hours and assumed his sister was tossing in her sleep. Asha's mother went into her room at approximately 6:30 a.m. to wake her children for school and discovered Asha was not in her bed. The family immediately summoned authorities and an extensive search of the surrounding area was initialized, with no result. Asha has never been heard from again.
Two truck drivers reported seeing her walking south on Highway 18 north of Shelby between 3:30 and 4:15 a.m. Asha was apparently near the intersection of Highway 180 at the time, about a mile from her home. She left the highway at this point and walked off into the darkness. It was the last confirmed sighting of the child.
Asha may have been sighted getting into a distinctive dark green early 1970s model car on the night she was last seen. The vehicle, which had rust around the wheel wells, is thought to have been either a Lincoln Mark IV or a Ford Thunderbird. Photos of similar cars are posted with this summary.
Investigators believe Asha left her residence of her own accord. She is described as being quiet, shy person and a good student with a happy home life, and her reasons for leaving aren't clear. Asha's basketball team lost a game, their first loss in the season, the day before her disappearance. Her family said she was upset over the loss, but she calmed down within a few hours.
Asha's fourth-grade class at Fallston Elementary School read the book The Whipping Boy by Sid Fleischman in February 2000. The book centers around the story of a prince and a commoner child who receives lashes on the royal's behalf. The children proceed to run away and the book details their adventures. Both boys return safely to the kingdom at the story's end. It is not known if the book served as a catalyst for Asha's disappearance.
Asha's black book bag and black Tweety Bird purse were missing from her room after her disappearance, along with a pair of blue jeans with a red stripe, black sneakers, a long-sleeved white shirt with purple lettering, a red vest with black trim, black overalls with Tweety Bird on them, and a long-sleeved black and white shirt. All the doors to the house were found locked; Asha kept her house key in the bookbag.
Asha's pencil, marker and Mickey Mouse hair bow were discovered on the ground in the doorway of a tool shed at Turner's Upholstery on Highway 18 on February 17, 2000, three days after her disappearance. Her belongings were found near the stretch of road where Asha was seen walking in the early morning hours of February 14. A search of the area failed to produce additional evidence. The items were discovered more than one mile from Asha's residence.
A contractor uncovered Asha's book bag, which has her name and telephone number written on it, buried off Highway 18 in August 2001, 18 months after she disappeared. The item had been double-wrapped in black plastic trash bags and was found more than 26 miles from her family's home and in a different direction from where she'd been walking. Nearby some animal bones and a pair of men's khaki pants were found.
The bag was sent to a federal laboratory for testing, but, citing the pending investigation, authorities never released the results. Unconfirmed reports state the bag contained Asha's name on a piece of paper, as well as clothing and a pencil . In October of that year, a plastic trash bag similar to the one Asha's bookbag was wrapped in was found. The bag was sent to a police lab for analysis.
Investigators announced that they considered Asha's disappearance to be a criminal matter and foul play was suspected after the bookbag's discovery. The surrounding area was thoroughly searched afterwards, but additional evidence was reportedly not located. A photo of some of Asha's personal items is posted with this summary.
Investigating Agency
Cleveland County Sheriff's Office
704-484-4822
Other
The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children
Child Protection Education of America
The Shelby Star
The Charlotte Observer
North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation
Burke County Emergency Services
Child Search Ministries
The Gaston Gazette
Unsolved in the News
ABC News
Find Our Missing
Federal Bureau of Investigation
NamUs
Missing Person Photos
A missing person is a person who has disappeared and whose status as alive or dead cannot be confirmed as their location and condition are unknown. A person may go missing through a voluntary disappearance, or else due to an accident, crime, death in a location where they cannot be found (such as at sea), or many other reasons. In most parts of the world, a missing person will usually be found quickly. While criminal abductions are some of the most widely reported missing person cases, these account for only 2 to 5 percent of missing children in Europe.
By contrast, some missing person cases remain unresolved for many years. Laws related to these cases are often complex since, in many jurisdictions, relatives and third parties may not deal with a person's assets until their death is considered proven by law and a formal death certificate issued. The situation, uncertainties, and lack of closure or a funeral resulting when a person goes missing may be extremely painful with long-lasting effects on family and friends.
A number of organizations seek to connect, share best practices, and disseminate information and images of missing children to improve the effectiveness of missing children investigations, including the International Commission on Missing Persons, the International Centre for Missing & Exploited Children (ICMEC), as well as national organizations, including the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children in the US, Missing People in the UK, Child Focus in Belgium, and The Smile of the Child in Greece.
Resources for Missing Persons
According to current statistics, 4,000 people in the United States go missing every day.
Sometimes a child suddenly vanishes from the bus stop or the local park or even from their own yard or bedroom. Or a teenager doesn�t return home after a walk to the neighborhood grocery store or a bike ride or a party with friends.
Other times, an adult is mysteriously absent from their job or neighbors haven�t seen them for several days, and family and friends haven�t heard from them either.
Missing Person Photos
