In the early hours of Feb. 14, 2000, a 9-year-old North Carolina girl strapped on her backpack and slipped out of her familys rural two-bedroom duplex apartment. To this day, no one knows why she left or where she went.

At around 4 a.m., two motorists one driving a truck, the other a car said that they saw the girl walking on the highway about 1 mile from her home. When one driver turned around to check on her, he said she ran into the woods.

That was the last time fourth grader Asha Degree was ever seen. But in the days and months that followed, several bizarre clues only compounded the mystery in a case that investigators still believe they can solve.