CLEVELAND — Ashley Summers was 14 years old when she went missing in Cleveland -- and now this month marks 17 years since her disappearance.
Her case remains unsolved, but authorities continue searching for answers.
ASHLEY SUMMERS CASE DETAILS
The FBI says Summers was last seen “around July 7-8” in 2007 before she was reported missing to Cleveland police on July 11.
“Police initially reported Ashley as a runaway, likely due to recent tensions with her family and because she frequently spent time at other relatives’ homes,” according to the FBI. “But her family didn't believe she had disappeared on her own accord.”
FBI Cleveland Special Agent Cristin McCaskill, the lead agent in this case, says Summers “was a typical teenager and had started to disagree with her mom about a couple of things, most notably in the few weeks leading up to her disappearance.”
"One point of contention was when Ashley got a tattoo -- it read 'Gene,' the name of her boyfriend at the time, with a heart around it,” McCaskill said.
THE INVESTIGATION
The FBI joined the investigation in 2008 after the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children alerted the FBI Cleveland Field Office about the case.
“At the time, there was another missing girl from the west side of Cleveland -- Gina DeJesus, one of three women who were held hostage by Ariel Castro,” according to the FBI. “Ashley and Gina were similar in age and from the same part of Cleveland. Initially, there was speculation that Ashley may have also been one of Castro’s victims. However, no evidence supported this, and Ashley’s case became an independent investigation.”
The FBI says law enforcement has interviewed family members, neighbors and anybody who could potentially have information throughout the investigation.
“Gene -- Ashley’s boyfriend at the time -- and his family cooperated with authorities, and there has been no evidence to suggest that foul play was involved on Gene’s part,” according to the FBI.
McCaskill says she can’t think of a single agent or analyst on their squad who hasn’t touched the Summers investigation.
“And this is including a lot of victim specialist support, analyst support and support from agents and analysts on other squads, as well as the FBI Evidence Response Team and Child Abduction Rapid Deployment (CARD) team,” McCaskill says.
Law enforcement also highlights several areas of interest where Summers was known to frequent in Cleveland. These include:
- 2100 block of West 96th
- 3800 block of West 23rd
- 1100 block of Holmden Avenue
- 3400 block of West 44th
HOW YOU CAN HELP
If you know anything about this case, authorities are asking you to step forward and call the FBI in Cleveland at 216-522-1400. Any tipsters can remain anonymous.
Crime Stoppers is also offering reward money in the case. You can submit tips there by calling 216-25-CRIME.
"This is still very much an active investigation," McCaskill says. "We still hope to bring resolution to Ashley’s family. And I believe that the only way we're going to be able to do that at this point is through tips -- and the only way to generate those tips is by getting Ashley’s story out to the public. I am certain there are individuals out there who we haven’t spoken to yet. If someone believes they saw Ashley or knows where she may be, we welcome all tips."
Summers would now be 31 years old.
At the time of her disappearance, she was described as 5’5” tall and around 130 pounds. She has brown hair and blue eyes with the “Gene” tattoo on her upper-right arm in black ink over a red heart.
Last year, authorities released an age-progression photo to show what her likeness could be today with the hope somebody may recognize Summers or come forward with information connected to the case. You can see the age-progression photo below.
Her mother, Jennifer Summers, says her mysterious disappearance “has left our family in pieces.”
“We cling to the hope of her safe return,” she says in a press release from the FBI. “We appeal to anyone with information to come forward and contact the Cleveland FBI."
McCaskill says they will continue to follow all leads.
“We will go wherever the evidence leads us,” she says. “We're going to knock down every door, and we're going to try and identify every different potential lead and follow it to its logical conclusion because I'm not going to rule anything out at this point in time. I’m just as willing to believe one theory over another based on the evidence and to follow that wherever it takes us."