Investigators said Friday they are reviewing a new message related to the disappearance of 84-year-old Nancy Guthrie, mother of NBC anchor Savannah Guthrie, but provided few details about its contents or origin. The Pima County Sheriff’s Office and the FBI said they are “actively inspecting the information provided in the message for its authenticity.” Authorities previously disclosed an unverified ransom note demanding bitcoin; that note included an initial deadline that has passed and a second deadline that fell on Monday. The Guthrie family has publicly urged whoever is holding Nancy to communicate.
Sheriff Chris Nanos said he and agents are being cautious about releasing information on how the home was entered and other key parts of the timeline. An updated law enforcement timeline shows roughly a 41-minute gap between when a doorbell camera disconnected and when Nancy’s pacemaker app went offline from a phone that was left at the house. Software registered motion at about 2:12 a.m. within that period, but the activity was not recorded.
Investigators pointed to a frustrating technology gap: the home’s cameras registered motion the night she vanished, but Guthrie did not have a subscription to the camera service, and the company said it could not recover the missing footage. The sheriff noted that digital data can be inconsistent and cautioned against expecting technology to instantly produce a clear image or a suspect.
Former FBI supervisory special agent Doug Kouns, founder and CEO of Veracity, said any new message must be authenticated. Analysts will look at how the message arrived, whether it passed through intermediaries, whether a VPN was used and what metadata exists. They will test consistency with prior communications and try to determine whether a message is a legitimate ransom demand or a hoax; Kouns said some hoaxers have already been identified and detained in recent days.
Kouns also warned that communicating carries risk for those behind a demand, and that bad actors often limit contact because messages can expose them. “There has to be a dialogue for this to work out the way they want it to,” he said.
Law enforcement has not named a suspect or ruled anyone out. The sheriff said the family is “devastated” and that detectives are proceeding cautiously but persistently. Authorities have returned to the Guthrie home for follow-up searches. Kouns urged investigators to revisit the scene with fresh eyes — rechecking trash, ditches and retention ponds, searching for trace evidence, footprints or discarded items — and to renew canvasses for video from nearby businesses and residents, noting people may be slow to check personal cameras.
Investigators emphasized they have received a mix of credible leads and hoax messages, and that technological limits can complicate straightforward-seeming evidence. They continue to ask anyone with relevant video or information, no matter how small, to contact the FBI or the Pima County Sheriff’s Office.