The case of missing Nancy Guthrie has attracted significant public interest. The 84-year-old woman, who’s the mother of Today’s host Savannah Guthrie, has been missing since January 31, when she was last seen.
According to reports, Nancy and her daughter Anne had dinner together in the evening of January 31, and Anne dropped her off at home at around 9:30 p.m. However, Nancy didn’t show up at church on Sunday morning, which raised concerns because she had never missed service before.
By Sunday noon, she was officially reported missing.
Within hours of her disappearance, teams were combing the area by land and air, with planes, helicopters, drones, and Border Patrol dogs joining the effort.
Police believe Nancy Guthrie was taken from her home against her will, calling the case a possible kidnapping or abduction. Investigators say her limited mobility makes it unlikely she left on her own, and they have ruled out cognitive impairment.
“This is not dementia-related. She’s as sharp as a tack,” Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos said in a press conference.
Authorities have not revealed what first raised concerns of a crime, but according to the Los Angeles Times, blood was discovered on the front porch of her Tucson home. Police sources said investigators have not put forward any theory about why she may have been taken. The blood was reportedly found alongside signs of forced entry at her Catalina Hills, Arizona, residence, though officials say its source has not been identified.
In the most recent update released by authorities amid the ongoing search for Nancy Guthrie, federal officials revealed a troubling development connected to the case, with the Federal Bureau of Investigation confirming that they made an arrest after determining the individual had been posing as the captor of the missing 84-year-old woman.
According to investigators, the suspect sent a fraudulent demand intended to appear as though it came from whoever was responsible for Nancy Guthrie’s disappearance.
Officials emphasized that the message wasn’t real and was simply an attempt to scam and take advantage of the situation. The person who was arrested is accused of preying on the fear and confusion surrounding the case by pretending to be the kidnapper and sending a fake demand, which ended up misleading the family and disrupted the ongoing investigation.
“We believe there is no evidence to connect this to Nancy’s case,” Heith Janke, the special agent in charge of the bureau’s Phoenix division said at a Feb. 5 press conference after confirming the arrest, E News! reported. “It was someone that was trying to profit from it. A total imposter.”
NEW: Photo of L.A. man arrested for sending texts to Guthrie family asking for bitcoin, according to Feds. Derrick Callella. pic.twitter.com/rL8mq0kNyD
— Matt Finn (@MattFinnFNC) February 6, 2026
Authorities also made it clear that this arrest only relates to the bogus message and does not mean the suspect had anything to do with Nancy’s disappearance.
According to National Today, the suspect in question is 42-year-old Hawthorne man named Derrick Callella.
He allegedly sent the message to Nancy’s family shortly after her family shared an emotional plea video in which they asked whoever has taken their mother to return her home safely.
The message in question allegedly said, “Did you get the bitcoin [we are] waiting on our end for the transaction,” CBS reported.
The publication also noted that the FBI said Callella used a program to disguise his phone number when he sent the message. Despite that, agents were able to trace the text back to an IP address linked to his home in California, according to the criminal complaint.
He was arrested on February 5 in Hawthorne, about five miles from LAX. The complaint says Callella admitted to sending the message after locating the family’s information online.Investigators also noted that he tried to call Nancy Guthrie’s family shortly after sending the texts.
According to the FBI, “The two text messages have not been linked to the February 2, 2026, ransom demand.”
Derrick Callella, who used to work for Los Angeles County, has run into legal trouble before. In 2025, he was one of 13 county employees accused of collecting nearly $430,000 in unemployment benefits they weren’t entitled to during the pandemic. He faced both felony and misdemeanor theft charges in connection with the case.
Most recently, a new ransom note has been revealed by a local TV station, including details of the content.
JJ McKinney from Tucson ABC affiliate KGUN9 reported the station received a ransom note regarding Nancy’s missing, saying, “Multiple ransom notes have been sent out to the media, including one that was sent to us.”
He added: “In the letter, the potential kidnappers demanded that the Guthries pay them $6 million before this Monday.”
According to the outlet, the authors of the ransom note said Nancy Guthrie would face serious harm if their Monday 5 p.m. local deadline was not met.
Nancy’s children pleaded for the return of her “valuable” mother in an emotional video they shared on the social media, offering to pay a ransom, New York Post reported.
“We received your message and we understand,” Savannah Guthrie said on Instagram, alongside her brother Camron and sister Annie.
“We beg you now to return our mother to us, so that we can celebrate with her,” she added, later saying that her mother’s return is “very valuable to us” and “we will pay.”
It remains unknown what message Savannah and her family referred to, whether it was one of the messages sent to news stations, or a completely new one.
They said they were ready to respond to the ransom notes, but first they needed to be sure the notes were genuine.
“We, too, have heard the reports about a ransom letter in the media. As a family, we are doing everything that we can. We are ready to talk,” Savannah said, adding a plea for proof of life: “We need to know without a doubt that she is alive and that you have her. We want to hear from you, and we are ready to listen. Please. Reach out to us.”
Previously, TMZ reported to have received a ransom note regarding Nancy’s disappearance.
“So, we got something in our email that looks like a, it’s written like a ransom note for Savannah Guthrie’s mother,” TMZ’s Harvey Levin said.
He added that the note requests “a very specific” amount of money.
“And, also, at the bottom there are certain things they’re saying about what she was wearing and damage to the house to say, ‘It’s us,’” Levin explained. “So, we have contacted the sheriff’s department and we want to get them this letter.”
The outlet reported that they couldn’t verify if the email was genuine, but it seemed to include details that only someone close to the situation would know. “There’s a demand for money or else in there. We’ll keep you updated as this develops,” Levin said.
Officials with the Pima County Sheriff’s Department confirmed that some “possible random notes” have appeared in connection with the case, but they didn’t confirm whether any of them are real. Police also wouldn’t say whether the note TMZ reported is authentic or just the work of a hoaxer.
In the wake of her mother’s disappearance, Savannah Guthrie has stepped back from her duties on the Today show and has appealed to the public to keep her mother in their prayers.
“We believe in prayer. We believe in voices raised in unison, in love, in hope. We believe in goodness. We believe in humanity. Above all, we believe in Him,” Savannah wrote.
“Thank you for lifting your prayers with ours for our beloved mom, our dearest Nancy, a woman of deep conviction, a good and faithful servant. Raise your prayers with us and believe with us that she will be lifted by them in this very moment.”
She concluded, “We need you. He will keep in perfect peace those whose hearts are steadfast, trusting in the Lord.” A verse from Isaiah, “for all time, for all of us. Bring her home.”
The effort to find Nancy Guthrie continues, with officials warning the public to rely only on confirmed reports from law enforcement as the investigation moves forward.
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