NC NC - Asha Degree, 9, Shelby, 14 Feb 2000

[Cryptic]

As to the origins of the possible perp, she was also really active in basketball. Another thing she did in the days leading up to her disappearance. Could be a coach, teammate's parent, etc. A theory I have made in the past is it could be someone with knowledge of her lost basketball game. Maybe they offered to give her lessons or practice with her.

I think a youth basketball connection is also viable. As for the designated purpose / arranged meeting possibility, it might be good to examine how she may of communciated with a possible / probable predator.

Asha was sheltered, but by no means isolated. Pocket cell phones were available, but I believe land line phones were still the main phone. I doubt Asha's parents would have been among the trend setting and gotten Asha cell phone ahead of her peers. Likewise, her phone usage would probably have been monitored in at least a general sense.

The a bove would seem to leave two forms of possible communication:
A. Olde fashioned face to face talk and interaction
B. Perpetrator provides her a secret cell phone.

Of these two possibilities, I think "A" is far more likely as pocket cell phones were still somewhat novelties back then for pre teens (and even for a certain number of adults). I dont think a pre teen being gifted a "secret" cell phone would stay secret for very long.

Option "A" in Asha's experience would seem to be limited to school, extended family and inlaws, church, and as you pointed out, a basket ball team.

 

[Eireboy]

With the NKOTB shirt all we know is it was found in the bag at the construction site and that her mom claimed it wasn't hers. We don't know the origins of the shirt and it is possible that it isn't related to the perpetrator. It could be as innocent as she spilled something on her pajamas at the sleepover and someone let her borrow the shirt and she pull it in her bag when she changed to go home not thinking about it.

Also of note, being that this detail just now emerged the original owner of the shirt possibly doesn't remember giving it to her, has moved away, or is deceased.

I wonder why they didn't release the shirt and book from the beginning when this detail would be fresh in their memory.

I fully agree that unless someone talks then this case most likely won't be solved. Someone has to know something. Hope that prisoners claims are credible.

I think the reason why they didn’t release the details regarding the book and NKOTB shirt was in case someone came forward saying they knew what had happened. Only the perpetrator would know theses details. This would separate the genuine informants from scamming people looking for a reward

 

[Eireboy]

With the NKOTB shirt all we know is it was found in the bag at the construction site and that her mom claimed it wasn't hers. We don't know the origins of the shirt and it is possible that it isn't related to the perpetrator. It could be as innocent as she spilled something on her pajamas at the sleepover and someone let her borrow the shirt and she pull it in her bag when she changed to go home not thinking about it.

Also of note, being that this detail just now emerged the original owner of the shirt possibly doesn't remember giving it to her, has moved away, or is deceased.

I wonder why they didn't release the shirt and book from the beginning when this detail would be fresh in their memory.

I fully agree that unless someone talks then this case most likely won't be solved. Someone has to know something. Hope that prisoners claims are credible.

I think the reason why they didn’t release the details regarding the book and NKOTB shirt was in case someone came forward saying they knew what had happened. Only the perpetrator would know theses details. This would separate the genuine informants from scamming people looking for a reward

With the NKOTB shirt all we know is it was found in the bag at the construction site and that her mom claimed it wasn't hers. We don't know the origins of the shirt and it is possible that it isn't related to the perpetrator. It could be as innocent as she spilled something on her pajamas at the sleepover and someone let her borrow the shirt and she pull it in her bag when she changed to go home not thinking about it.

Also of note, being that this detail just now emerged the original owner of the shirt possibly doesn't remember giving it to her, has moved away, or is deceased.

I wonder why they didn't release the shirt and book from the beginning when this detail would be fresh in their memory.

I fully agree that unless someone talks then this case most likely won't be solved. Someone has to know something. Hope that prisoners claims are credible.

I am sure that Prisoners claim has been discredited by now

 

[Eireboy]

With the NKOTB shirt all we know is it was found in the bag at the construction site and that her mom claimed it wasn't hers. We don't know the origins of the shirt and it is possible that it isn't related to the perpetrator. It could be as innocent as she spilled something on her pajamas at the sleepover and someone let her borrow the shirt and she pull it in her bag when she changed to go home not thinking about it.

Also of note, being that this detail just now emerged the original owner of the shirt possibly doesn't remember giving it to her, has moved away, or is deceased.

I wonder why they didn't release the shirt and book from the beginning when this detail would be fresh in their memory.

I fully agree that unless someone talks then this case most likely won't be solved. Someone has to know something. Hope that prisoners claims are credible.

I think the reason why they didn’t release the details regarding the book and NKOTB shirt was in case someone came forward saying they knew what had happened. Only the perpetrator would know theses details. This would separate the genuine informants from scamming people looking for a reward

With the NKOTB shirt all we know is it was found in the bag at the construction site and that her mom claimed it wasn't hers. We don't know the origins of the shirt and it is possible that it isn't related to the perpetrator. It could be as innocent as she spilled something on her pajamas at the sleepover and someone let her borrow the shirt and she pull it in her bag when she changed to go home not thinking about it.

Also of note, being that this detail just now emerged the original owner of the shirt possibly doesn't remember giving it to her, has moved away, or is deceased.

I wonder why they didn't release the shirt and book from the beginning when this detail would be fresh in their memory.

I fully agree that unless someone talks then this case most likely won't be solved. Someone has to know something. Hope that prisoners claims are credible.

I am sure that Prisoners claim has been discredited by now

She had family that lived nearby. Her grandmother I think. Days prior she attended a sleepover with her older cousins that might have been held there. This is off the top of my head so forgive me if some details are slightly off. The cousins were in their teens.

Do u think she might have been influenced in anyway by her Cousins?

 

[AlwaysCoffee]

I just wanted to comment about Asha's possible interest in NKOTB... I was 11 years old in the year 2000 and had no clue who they were until the LFO song "Summer Girls" came out in 1999-ish. It's a nonsense song but mentions the group in the chorus. If I remember correctly, it had a lot of airplay and was even shown during Nickelodeon commercial breaks. I think it's possible that Asha was familiar with the song and started to become interested in NKOTB from there.

That doesn't solve the mystery of where it came from, but it might explain why a girl born in 1991 would be listening to NKOTB and not NSYNC or the Backstreet Boys.

 

[Dreacol23]

I just wanted to comment about Asha's possible interest in NKOTB... I was 11 years old in the year 2000 and had no clue who they were until the LFO song "Summer Girls" came out in 1999-ish. It's a nonsense song but mentions the group in the chorus. If I remember correctly, it had a lot of airplay and was even shown during Nickelodeon commercial breaks. I think it's possible that Asha was familiar with the song and started to become interested in NKOTB from there.

That doesn't solve the mystery of where it came from, but it might explain why a girl born in 1991 would be listening to NKOTB and not NSYNC or the Backstreet Boys.

good idea. I was born in 1991 and was definitely a Backstreet boy fan. I’ve never heard of nkotb until this song came out. I remember it was mainly played on Disney channel in 2000 or 99.

 

[aThousandYearsWide]

I just wanted to comment about Asha's possible interest in NKOTB... I was 11 years old in the year 2000 and had no clue who they were until the LFO song "Summer Girls" came out in 1999-ish. It's a nonsense song but mentions the group in the chorus. If I remember correctly, it had a lot of airplay and was even shown during Nickelodeon commercial breaks. I think it's possible that Asha was familiar with the song and started to become interested in NKOTB from there.

That doesn't solve the mystery of where it came from, but it might explain why a girl born in 1991 would be listening to NKOTB and not NSYNC or the Backstreet Boys.

good idea. I was born in 1991 and was definitely a Backstreet boy fan. I’ve never heard of nkotb until this song came out. I remember it was mainly played on Disney channel in 2000 or 99.

I was also born in 1991. I remember asking my Dad who NKOTB were and also what Abercrombie and Fitch was lol. I remember LFO playing on Nickelodeon alot after they appeared in an episode of the Amanda Show.

 

[aThousandYearsWide]

I think the reason why they didn’t release the details regarding the book and NKOTB shirt was in case someone came forward saying they knew what had happened. Only the perpetrator would know theses details. This would separate the genuine informants from scamming people looking for a reward

I guess since the bag was buried they suspect the person that buried it would know the contents of the bag?

 

[Eireboy]

I guess since the bag was buried they suspect the person that buried it would know the contents of the bag?

Yeah for sure, whoever buried it knows exactly what was in the bag. Was the bag intentionally buried there days before it was found by the construction workers I wonder?

 

[aThousandYearsWide]

Yeah for sure, whoever buried it knows exactly what was in the bag. Was the bag intentionally buried there days before it was found by the construction workers I wonder?

I wondered that too! And if they extensively interviewed all the construction workers with access to the site. Another curious question would be why they didn't check the records on the Dr. Seuss book then. Recently they say the records don't date back to the year she went missing, but the bag was found not too long after. Would they completely destroy the records for the year before? Don't parents get fines at the end of the year for overdue library books? It seems like it would be more traceable unless investigators goofed on that one and failed to check records when it was fresh evidence. I've also seen articles claim that the contents of her bag were 99.9% her belongings and that isn't true with these newly released findings. Did they not investigate the contents until later?

 

[aThousandYearsWide]

This article has some good insite on her case

Answers some questions about the book and shirt:
February 14, 2020, was the 20th anniversary of the case, and the FBI used the milestone to make a renewed request for information on the Dr. Seuss book and the New Kids nightshirt. They also released a new detail: the two items had been found inside of Asha’s backpack when it was recovered. Neither item had belonged to Asha, and as of right now the answer to how they ended up in her backpack remains a mystery.

Investigators said that Asha had not been the person who checked the book out of the library, but library records didn’t go back to 2000 so they had no way of telling who had checked it out. As for the nightshirt, Asha likely never knew who the New Kids were. The tour that the nightshirt was from had happened before Asha had even been born. It’s unclear why investigators waited so long to reveal these items to the public, but they remain optimistic that they will help solve the case.

On theories of why she left:
It is generally accepted — by friends, family, and law enforcement — that Asha walked out of the apartment that night of her own free will. The question is why. Some speculate that she was more upset over the lost basketball game than her parents knew, and this was the catalyst in her decision to run. She was the kind of child who couldn’t handle it if someone was angry with her. If some of her classmates had blamed her for the loss, she may have been afraid to face them on Monday morning.

It’s a farfetched theory, but it is possible. If she did want to run away, why would she wait and do it in the middle of the night? She was afraid of the dark and had never really gone anywhere alone.

Some people believe that she didn’t really leave on her own, but had been groomed to do so by someone she knew and trusted. It’s clear from interviews with her family members that she was extremely shy, especially around people she didn’t know. She also never did anything without getting permission from her mother first — she wouldn’t even let her own aunt in the front door until her mother said it was okay. This makes it seem unlikely that she would have gone anywhere with anyone, trusted or not, unless she told her parents first. It also is hard to believe she would do anything without telling her brother, as the two of them tended to do everything together.

Asha didn’t have access to the internet, so she couldn’t have met someone in a chat room. It’s possible that she had attracted the attention of an older sibling of one of her friends, but again, this seems unlikely. Someone — her friend, her brother, friend’s family — would probably have noticed if an older teenage child had taken a sudden interest in a nine-year-old girl.

 

[aThousandYearsWide]

I read another forum on Asha's disappearance and there is a theory that the book and the shirt were actually the perps children's items that they accidentally put in Ashas bag as an attempt to get rid of evidence. Could be why they didn't release it then. And with the book being from Asha's school it also plays into the theory that the perp was a parent of a student at her school.

What's interesting is the article I posted above they state Asha didn't check out the book but they have no way of knowing who actually did. How do they know she actually didn't if they have no way of confirming this?

I am the same age as Asha and I remember being assigned a reading buddy with a younger child that year. They were kindergarteners and we would read books to them once a week. Could this explain the unknown picture of the girl and the Dr Seuss book? I also went to school in NC so I don't know if it was statewide thing or by district/county.

 

[Eireboy]

I wondered that too! And if they extensively interviewed all the construction workers with access to the site. Another curious question would be why they didn't check the records on the Dr. Seuss book then. Recently they say the records don't date back to the year she went missing, but the bag was found not too long after. Would they completely destroy the records for the year before? Don't parents get fines at the end of the year for overdue library books? It seems like it would be more traceable unless investigators goofed on that one and failed to check records when it was fresh evidence. I've also seen articles claim that the contents of her bag were 99.9% her belongings and that isn't true with these newly released findings. Did they not investigate the contents until later?

I am sure that the contents of the bag would have been quickly discovered that they were not Asha’s belongings. Usually when a kid takes a book from a School Library the only person who takes note of it is the teacher and most of the time they don’t. I doubt that one of the construction workers buried the bag, I would say that someone gained entry to the site at night, most construction sites are easy enough to gain access to

 

[Eireboy]

This article has some good insite on her case

Answers some questions about the book and shirt:
February 14, 2020, was the 20th anniversary of the case, and the FBI used the milestone to make a renewed request for information on the Dr. Seuss book and the New Kids nightshirt. They also released a new detail: the two items had been found inside of Asha’s backpack when it was recovered. Neither item had belonged to Asha, and as of right now the answer to how they ended up in her backpack remains a mystery.

Investigators said that Asha had not been the person who checked the book out of the library, but library records didn’t go back to 2000 so they had no way of telling who had checked it out. As for the nightshirt, Asha likely never knew who the New Kids were. The tour that the nightshirt was from had happened before Asha had even been born. It’s unclear why investigators waited so long to reveal these items to the public, but they remain optimistic that they will help solve the case.

On theories of why she left:
It is generally accepted — by friends, family, and law enforcement — that Asha walked out of the apartment that night of her own free will. The question is why. Some speculate that she was more upset over the lost basketball game than her parents knew, and this was the catalyst in her decision to run. She was the kind of child who couldn’t handle it if someone was angry with her. If some of her classmates had blamed her for the loss, she may have been afraid to face them on Monday morning.

It’s a farfetched theory, but it is possible. If she did want to run away, why would she wait and do it in the middle of the night? She was afraid of the dark and had never really gone anywhere alone.

Some people believe that she didn’t really leave on her own, but had been groomed to do so by someone she knew and trusted. It’s clear from interviews with her family members that she was extremely shy, especially around people she didn’t know. She also never did anything without getting permission from her mother first — she wouldn’t even let her own aunt in the front door until her mother said it was okay. This makes it seem unlikely that she would have gone anywhere with anyone, trusted or not, unless she told her parents first. It also is hard to believe she would do anything without telling her brother, as the two of them tended to do everything together.

Asha didn’t have access to the internet, so she couldn’t have met someone in a chat room. It’s possible that she had attracted the attention of an older sibling of one of her friends, but again, this seems unlikely. Someone — her friend, her brother, friend’s family — would probably have noticed if an older teenage child had taken a sudden interest in a nine-year-old girl.

Maybe they know that Asha couldn’t have borrowed the book from the School Library cause maybe kids her age weren’t allowed to. Maybe she was more upset about the game than she let on, and maybe she couldn’t run away on the way to School cause her Brother would have walked with her to School. But that was on the Saturday morning so she was ok on Saturday night about losing the game.

 

[Eireboy]

I read another forum on Asha's disappearance and there is a theory that the book and the shirt were actually the perps children's items that they accidentally put in Ashas bag as an attempt to get rid of evidence. Could be why they didn't release it then. And with the book being from Asha's school it also plays into the theory that the perp was a parent of a student at her school.

What's interesting is the article I posted above they state Asha didn't check out the book but they have no way of knowing who actually did. How do they know she actually didn't if they have no way of confirming this?

I am the same age as Asha and I remember being assigned a reading buddy with a younger child that year. They were kindergarteners and we would read books to them once a week. Could this explain the unknown picture of the girl and the Dr Seuss book? I also went to school in NC so I don't know if it was statewide thing or by district/county.

I think the fact that the book came from the School Library and they say it wasn’t Asha’s book narrows down the number of possible suspects considerably. It means that if Asha was harmed by someone outside her inner circle well then it had to be by someone connected to her School. If the police really quizzed people in the School well then I am sure that they could find a link. Maybe they have and just need evidence to tie them to Asha. The picture of the girl could have nothing to do with Asha, maybe the wind just blew it into the Turner’s shed

 

[aThousandYearsWide]

Maybe they know that Asha couldn’t have borrowed the book from the School Library cause maybe kids her age weren’t allowed to. Maybe she was more upset about the game than she let on, and maybe she couldn’t run away on the way to School cause her Brother would have walked with her to School. But that was on the Saturday morning so she was ok on Saturday night about losing the game.

I just thought of something! At my school, library day was weekly and was different times and days of the week for different classes/grades. Maybe that's how they knew Asha's didn't check it out. Even if the card wasn't filled out by the student, the Librarian still stamped the card and maybe it wasn't a day Asha's class would have been at the library.

I just thought of something else, what if the reason they know Asha didn't check it out is if the book was checked out after her disappearance.

 

[aThousandYearsWide]

I think the fact that the book came from the School Library and they say it wasn’t Asha’s book narrows down the number of possible suspects considerably. It means that if Asha was harmed by someone outside her inner circle well then it had to be by someone connected to her School. If the police really quizzed people in the School well then I am sure that they could find a link. Maybe they have and just need evidence to tie them to Asha. The picture of the girl could have nothing to do with Asha, maybe the wind just blew it into the Turner’s shed

The biggest question with if it was someone connected to her school is why would they be near her house in the middle of the night (or on the highway as well especially if they had to go to work/drop their kids off at school in a couple of hours). I wonder about who rode her bus or the neighborhood children's parents. They would be in the same school district and also know where she lived.

With the unknown picture of the girl, that is the strangest thing to me. I mean very early in the investigation the picture was put in the newspapers regarding Asha's case and was asking if anyone knew who she was. Then seemingly overnight no one talked about the photo anymore. I wonder if she ever was ID'd and found to be unrelated. The positively confirming the Mickey mouse bow and pencil are also interesting to me. It seems like stuff any kid could have. I know the pencil said Atlanta and her family had a reunion there but could that just be a coincidence? And the candy wrappers, weren't they widely distributed at her school and Turners upholstery is likely still in that school district. The dogs next door didnt bark that night either. Could have been a neighbor child playing there during the day? I'm skeptical about the shed to be honest.

 

[aThousandYearsWide]

I am sure that the contents of the bag would have been quickly discovered that they were not Asha’s belongings. Usually when a kid takes a book from a School Library the only person who takes note of it is the teacher and most of the time they don’t. I doubt that one of the construction workers buried the bag, I would say that someone gained entry to the site at night, most construction sites are easy enough to gain access to

I wonder if the site was easy to gain access to by a passerby. If it was more out of the way then I wonder if they were connected to the construction in any way, like they found out about it through a brother that drilled it etc. Maybe it wasn't directly a construction worker per say, but someone close to them.

The Mom took note of all the clothing that was missing from her bedroom so you're probably right. I'm sure when the bag was discovered they discussed the contents with the parents. My thinking was to investigators the kids shirt and book wouldn't seem out of place at first sight. An investigator could have overlooked it at first was my thinking.

 

[Gibbo214]

I wonder if the site was easy to gain access to by a passerby. If it was more out of the way then I wonder if they were connected to the construction in any way, like they found out about it through a brother that drilled it etc. Maybe it wasn't directly a construction worker per say, but someone close to them.

The Mom took note of all the clothing that was missing from her bedroom so you're probably right. I'm sure when the bag was discovered they discussed the contents with the parents. My thinking was to investigators the kids shirt and book wouldn't seem out of place at first sight. An investigator could have overlooked it at first was my thinking.

Would you have been likely to take a Dr Seuss book out of the library at nine years old? I was onto much more mature books than that at that age.

 

[aThousandYearsWide]

Would you have been likely to take a Dr Seuss book out of the library at nine years old? I was onto much more mature books than that at that age.

No actually, it was all zoobooks and Goosebumps that year. Our class was also reading the same 'The Whipping Boy' book as Asha's was (there was a theory that the book was the catalyst for Asha's disappearance). I agree it is too young for her but what if it was checked out for a younger reading buddy (I mention above that my school assigned us younger children to read to).

I'm beginning to think now that the book was checked out after her disappearance.