March 2 marks Day 30 in the search for Nancy Guthrie, the 84-year-old mother of NBC “Today” show host Savannah Guthrie, who went missing from her Tucson-area home on Feb. 1. (Getty Images; PCSD)
TUCSON, Ariz. – We are entering week 5 in the search for Nancy Guthrie, the 84-year-old mother of NBC “Today” show host Savannah Guthrie, who went missing from her Tucson-area home on Feb. 1. Authorities believe Nancy was taken from her home against her will.
What happened over the past few days?
Timeline:
The Pima County Sheriff’s Office says it is “refocusing resources” to detectives assigned to the case, and reviewing surveillance video, as the search for Nancy Guthrie hits the one-month mark.
On Friday in a new social media post, Savannah Guthrie pleaded for the return of her missing mother, saying the $1 million reward her family offered for the recovery of Nancy “can be paid in cash.”
“Please – be the one that brings her home. Tips can be anonymous, reward can be paid in cash, as explained here,” Guthrie wrote in her post, which was accompanied with a video from the “Today” show that explained to viewers how anonymous tips can be submitted.
On Thursday, newly-released video from a neighbor’s Ring camera showed a dozen cars passing through the area on the same morning that Nancy disappeared. Some of the activity takes place at around 2:30 a.m. on Feb. 1, which is around the same time Nancy’s pacemaker last synced with her iPhone.
The FBI told Fox News that some of its operations in the search have been moved to Phoenix. Nancy’s home will also reportedly be turned back over to her family either this weekend or early next week.
There was also new law enforcement activity on Wednesday at Nancy’s home. Drone video showed a group of detectives walking into the backyard by the pool and through a gate to the pack patio.
The investigators were also seen at the front door, standing near the area where blood was found on the ground.
Regarding DNA processing, they said in part, “All evidence collected from the crime scene and related search locations has been submitted for forensic analysis. The laboratory is processing the evidence.”
FBI officials said they have received 1,500 new tips since Savannah Guthrie increased the reward amount.
Pima County officials debunked claims that a new doorbell photo shows a masked suspect at Nancy Guthrie’s home prior to her Feb. 1 abduction, calling the social media rumors “purely speculative.” Investigators clarified that while images show a suspect in various stages of attire, there are no date or time stamps to prove the individual visited the property on multiple different days.
Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos reportedly told NBC News that there’s a snag with mixed DNA that was sent to a lab in Florida. He also said there are no names his team is currently looking into.
The backstory:
Guthrie went missing on the night of Jan. 31 and was reported missing on Feb. 1 when she didn’t show up for church. Since her disappearance, the FBI has released footage of her alleged abductor at her doorstep.
New photos released in search for Nancy Guthrie
PCSD and the FBI are working on finding Guthrie by searching rural and rigid terrain around the Tucson area, where Guthrie and her daughter, Annie, live. The sheriff’s department is asking for anyone within a 2-mile radius of Guthrie’s Catalina Foothills home to submit any footage they may have from Jan. 1 to Feb. 2 that they “deem out of the ordinary or important.”
Nancy Guthrie: Investigators seek help with video
As crews continue to search for Nancy Guthrie, investigators are also asking people who live in the area to check their surveillance video for anything unusual. FOX 10’s Nicole Krasean has more, from Tucson.
TMZ said they received a “highly sophisticated” ransom demand involving cryptocurrency.
“The email demands a dollar amount similar to the $6 million ransom demand in the previous email we received, days after the kidnapping. This email graphically describes the consequences if the ransom isn’t paid,” TMZ said.
TMZ said they forwarded the ransom demand to the FBI.
What you can do:
The FBI continues to urge anyone with information to contact its hotline at 1-800-CALL-FBI.
The Pima County Sheriff’s Department has also set up a tipline where the community can submit information. An online form is available for tips.
Map of the area where Nancy Guthrie was last seen:
The Source: The Pima County Sheriff’s Department, the FBI, and previous FOX 10 reports.