The sheriff of Pima County, AZ told reporters Thursday that they “believe Nancy is still out there,” but he said that there are no suspects or persons of interest since the disappearance of the mother of Today co-host Savannah Guthrie.
“We just want to get her home, and find a way to get to the bottom of this, just as you do,” said Sheriff Chris Nanos.
Along with her siblings, Savannah Guthrie posted an emotion plea on social media Wednesday night, calling for their mother’s return. “We want to hear from you, and we are ready to listen. Please reach out to us,” Savannah Guthrie said.
TMZ and KOLD-TV, a Tucson station, have reported receiving a ransom letter, something that the sheriff and the FBI say they are taking seriously. The note sent to TMZ demanded millions in bitcoin, the site reported.
Authorities said that the family has yet to be contacted. FBI Special Agent in Charge Heith Janke told reporters that what was important was that “if someone has Nancy and is demanding the ransom, that there is communication with the family.” He added, though, that “there has been no proof of life, and there was no other demands within that letter. So they’re still waiting for communication.”
He said that the ransom note “did make a demand for 5 p.m. today, and if a transfer wasn’t made, then I think a second demand was for next Monday. We’re not going to go beyond that.” He said that one note talked about an Apple Watch and one talked about a floodlight.
“We are not going to go into specifics,” Janke said. “It’s very important that we keep this investigation moving forward, and we don’t want to put more facts out there that others then can use to try to profit from this.”
He said that an arrest had been made on an “imposter” seeking to profit from the situation, but “we believe there’s no evidence to connect this to Nancy’s case.”
The FBI has offered $50,000 for leads that result in the finding of Nancy Guthrie or arrest and conviction of anyone involved, he said.
Responding to media reports, Nanos said authorities have no suspects or persons of interest in the case, but was not ruling anyone out. He also said that a DNA same of blood found on Nancy Guthrie’s porch came back and indicated that it was hers.
Nancy Guthrie was reported missing around noon on Sunday. Nanos gave an updated timeline. After visiting a local family’s home on Saturday evening, she was dropped off at 9:48 p.m. The garage door closed at 9:50 p.m. At 1:47 a.m. the next morning, the doorbell camera disconnected. At 2:12 a.m., software detected a person on camera, but no video has been recovered, and Nancy Guthrie did not have a subscription for stored images. At 2:28 a.m., her pacemaker app showed disconnection.
The family checked on her at 11:56 a.m. the next morning and, finding her missing, called 911 at 12:03 p.m.
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