New Developments in Asha Degree Case Raise Questions for Dedmon Family

SHELBY, N.C. (WBTV) – A newly released set of search warrants has highlighted troubling developments in the Asha Degree investigation, particularly regarding the Dedmon family, who have been named as suspects in the case. A 2025 lie detector test indicated deception on the part of Lizzie Grace Dedmon Foster, one of the daughters of Roy Lee Dedmon and Connie Elliott Dedmon.

The warrants, made public in mid-February, reveal the investigation’s progress since Asha’s disappearance more than 25 years ago on February 14, 2000. Asha was last seen near Highway 18, and reports indicated she may have been seen entering an older green vehicle.

Foster, along with her sisters Sarah Gwen Dedmon Caple and AnnaLee Victoria Dedmon Ramirez, were subjected to searches of their phones as investigators seek new leads in the cold case. The search warrants reveal that the family has become increasingly involved in the ongoing investigation since it began shortly after Asha’s disappearance. However, they have faced scrutiny following the recent disclosures.

According to the warrants, a bookbag belonging to Asha was discovered in August 2001, over a year after her disappearance, wrapped in trash bags along Highway 18 in Burke County. DNA testing on items within the bag connected it to Foster and Russell Underhill, a patient at a nursing facility once operated by the Dedmons. This connection has heightened investigators’ interest in the family.

In past interviews, a former employee of the Dedmons disclosed that Roy Lee Dedmon allegedly instructed his teenage daughter Foster to transport patients in a dubious vehicle to and from the Broughton Hospital in Morganton. This route included Highway 18, increasing the likelihood of its connection to Asha’s case.

During searches in September 2024, investigators procured a green 1964 AMC Rambler bearing similarities to the vehicle witnesses described. The warrants further assert that Asha Degree was likely a homicide victim whose remains have yet to surface, exacerbating the urgency of the investigation.

Both Foster and Caple were minors when Asha disappeared, raising suspicions that they may have been aided by adult figures in concealing the crime. Inconsistencies in the accounts of the Dedmon family have drawn criticism, especially following claims made by an acquaintance of Foster. This person alleged that at a party, Foster confessed to having killed Asha, an assertion that has been met with skepticism and denial.

“If my Dad did it, he did it, but I had nothing to do with it,” she reportedly told investigators during a recent interview. After expressing that she wanted to consult her ex-husband, Foster later declined to take a lie detection test, despite an earlier agreement.

Investigators’ attempts to speak with Caple on the same day were also met with refusal, as she postponed discussing the allegations until a later time. From text messages gathered between the sisters, it is evident they are apprehensive regarding the investigation’s implications for their father, stating, “Dad is probably going to be a huge suspect.”

The latest warrants, dated February 13, aim to search the phones of Foster and Caple, alongside their father, indicating continued scrutiny of the family’s involvement in the case.

As the investigation unfolds, no individual has yet been charged in connection with Asha Degree’s disappearance, which remains one of North Carolina’s most enduring mysteries.