"The only reason we're in the top charts of iTunes right now is because of all of you telling your friends and family and getting the word out. And we appreciate it so much." — Ashley Flowers
"My problem is there's a bunch of conflicting stuff out there and I am having a really hard time tracking down all these conflicting accounts to an actual source." — Ashley Flowers
"Every true crime story has one thing in common. Nothing is as it seems, and no podcast knows that better than Chameleon." — Ashley Flowers
The episode revisits the disappearance of nine-year-old Asia Degree, who vanished from her home in Shelby, North Carolina, on February 14, 2000. The initial events are pieced together, noting the power outage the night before and the subsequent confusion surrounding the timeline of events between Asia's parents returning home and her mother discovering her missing. The narrative highlights the challenges of piecing together facts from conflicting accounts found in online forums and older news articles, underscoring the difficulty of investigating underreported cases from nearly two decades prior.
The investigation details the initial search efforts, the processing of the Degree home, and the perplexing evidence suggesting Asia may have left voluntarily, including her missing backpack and purse, and a neighbor's sighting of a young girl matching her description walking along Highway 18. Despite the apparent signs of a planned departure, her parents assert this was out of character for Asia, citing her fear of the dark and storms. The discovery of Asia's backpack, buried in a black trash bag, 26 miles from her home 18 months later, adds another layer of mystery, with forensic testing results remaining undisclosed.
The case remained cold for years until 2015 when the FBI reinvestigated and offered a reward. A new tip in 2016 led to the announcement of a sighting of Asia getting into a dark green classic car, a Lincoln Continental or Ford Thunderbird, along Highway 18. Despite extensive reinvestigation and interviews by a specialized FBI car team, no definitive leads or arrests have been made, leaving the case unsolved and the family awaiting crucial information.