CLEVELAND COUNTY, N.C. — The Cleveland County Sheriff’s Office on Friday confirmed that investigators executed search warrants this week in connection with the disappearance of Asha Degree.
Degree, 9, hasn’t been seen since she was reported missing from Shelby on Feb. 14, 2000. Asha’s parents reported that they woke up and she was gone.
Channel 9 first reported this week when investigators towed a car from a property in Cleveland County, and the car matched the description of a vehicle sought in the case.
The sheriff’s office says they got search warrants based on “physical evidence directly connected to Asha’s disappearance.”
The case has attracted attention nationwide due to the length of time that Asha has been missing. One retired FBI agent told Channel 9 this was one of the most frustrating cases he’s been a part of.
“I have 38 years in law enforcement,” said Rick Schaffer, a retired FBI agent. “I would have to say there is not a single case that haunts me like this one.”
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Channel 9 previously reported an FBI source said no human remains were recovered. The sheriff’s office confirmed that information on Friday.
According to the sheriff’s office, “multiple items of interest” were taken from properties in Cleveland County, and they’ll be analyzed.
No criminal charges have been filed as of Friday.
No suspects have been identified by authorities.
Expanding search
Channel 9′s Ken Lemon learned that one of those search warrants was executed at a rest home that Roy Demon owns in Vale, about 40 minutes away from the major search in Shelby.
Neighbors told Lemon that they saw Cleveland County Sheriff’s Office cars, and several unmarked cars at the Northbrook Rest Home.
People working at the rest home on Friday didn’t want to talk about the search.
Officers reportedly went to other properties owned by Dedmon, Lemon learned. Friday afternoon, an attorney representing Dedmon announced a news conference to “dispel false rumors.”
Lemon spoke with investigators who aren’t working the case, and they said forensic science has made it even easier to find clues, even in a case that is as old as this one.
(VIDEO: Authorities in Cleveland County tow car resembling vehicle sought in Asha Degree case)
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