WILKESBORO, NC — For more than four decades, the family of Angela Hamby has lived with a void that time hasn’t been able to fill. This week, a new spark of hope emerged as Governor Josh Stein announced that the State of North Carolina is increasing the reward for information in her 1982 disappearance to $25,000.
The move is part of a renewed push to bring closure to one of the region’s longest-standing cold cases.
A Friday Morning that Never Ended
On October 29, 1982, Angela Hamby, then 20 years old, left her home in Wilkesboro around 9:30 a.m. to run routine errands. She was headed to the bank to make a deposit and then planned to go to the post office.
She was never seen again.
By 12:15 a.m. the following morning, her car was discovered abandoned on the side of Glenn’s Tastee Freeze in Wilkesboro. Despite an exhaustive investigation by local and state authorities that spanned years, the trail eventually went cold.
Breaking the Silence
The reward increase—up from the original $5,000 offered in the early 1980s—is designed to encourage anyone with "old" information to finally step forward.
"We are committed to using every tool at our disposal to bring closure to families who have suffered for far too long," Governor Stein said in a statement. "We hope this increased reward will encourage anyone with information, no matter how small it may seem, to come forward."
How You Can Help
The Wilkesboro Police Department and the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation (SBI) are asking for the public's assistance. Even a memory that felt insignificant forty years ago could be the piece of the puzzle investigators need today.
If you have any information regarding the disappearance of Angela Hamby, please contact:
Wilkesboro Police Department: (336) 667-7277
North Carolina SBI: (919) 662-4500