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A North Carolina mom who was reported missing more than two decades ago and recently found alive reportedly told authorities she left her family due to “ongoing domestic issues.”
The Rockingham County Sheriff’s Office said Michelle Hundely Smith, who disappeared in December 2001, was located on Feb. 20 in North Carolina after detectives received new information about her case.
“Let me just say there were no allegations of any foul play regarding her leaving,” Rockingham County Sheriff Sam Page told PEOPLE. “But according to Ms. Smith, she said she left… due to ongoing domestic issues at the time.”
She “did not elaborate on that,” he added.
Michelle Hundely Smith was found living a new life in North Carolina after disappearing 24 years ago, according to the Rockingham County Sheriff’s Office. (Bring Michelle Hundely Smith Home/Facebook)
Page did not give specifics about the “domestic issues” but noted that the sheriff’s office had no record of domestic incidents in the household, the outlet reported.
Smith was 38 years old when her husband reported that she had left their Eden home on Dec. 9, 2001, to go Christmas shopping in Martinsville, Virginia, and never returned. Her vehicle was also never located.
An extensive investigation followed, involving multiple agencies across North Carolina and Virginia, including the State Bureau of Investigation, the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
“She was in good health,” Page said when they found the now 63-year-old woman.
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Michelle Hundely Smith disappeared after leaving her home in North Carolina to go Christmas shopping in Virginia in December 2001. (Bring Michelle Hundely Smith Home/Facebook)
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In a lengthy Facebook post on Feb. 22, her daughter Amanda Smith wrote that the last 48 hours were a “whirlwind of emotions” for her family.
“You are free to think whatever, of course, just please don’t put them out there for my family to see. Please respect my family bc [because] we are hurting and going through a lot,” she wrote.
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“My dad has been through so many accusations since all the way back then… Even before social media was big, where we liv[ing] in a small town, there were many ppl [people] acting as if they just knew he was involved… Well he wasn’t! Of course, I never thought he was… My father has been through so much and I want it made clear that while their marriage had issues (just as many marriages go through) that my mom did not leave simply bc of a bad marriage. Everyone is entitled their opinions but please remember that my father has been proven innocent.”
A missing persons flyer circulated at the time of Michelle Hundely Smith’s disappearance in December 2001. (Bring Michelle Hundely Smith Home/Facebook)
Despite years of investigative work, her whereabouts remained unknown until recently, when Sgt. A. Disher and Detective C. Worley made contact with Smith at an “undisclosed location within North Carolina alive and well,” after receiving a tip, according tot he sheriff’s office.
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“They went and found this young lady that [has] been missing for many years, 20-plus years. And we don’t see a lot of the missing person cases like that,” Page told PEOPLE. “But now at least the family has closure, and they know she’s okay.”
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Digital has reached out to the Rockingham County Sheriff’s Office for comment.
Digital’s Julia Bonavita and Ashley Carnahan contributed to this report.
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