Nancy Guthrie, the mother of NBC’s Today show anchor Savannah Guthrie, is still missing.
84-year-old Nancy, who was last seen in the Catalina Foothills on Saturday January 31, was reported missing from her Arizona home.
In the hours after her disappearance, search-and-rescue teams scoured the area by land and air, aided by airplanes, helicopters, drones, and Border Patrol dogs.
“We’re pretty much just throwing everything at this that we can. Guthrie is 84 years old and is not of good physical health, and so naturally that’s a great concern,” Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos said in a press conference. “This is very concerning to us. We don’t typically get the sheriff out at a scene like this. But it’s very concerning what we’re learning from the house,” he continued, adding, “And so we’ll just continue. The detective’s homicide team is out right now looking at the scene as well.”
“It is a race against time, and I hope that window hasn’t closed,” Nanos told NBC’s Liz Kreutz during a segment for the Today show aired Tuesday, Feb. 3.
Police believe Nancy Guthrie was taken from her home against her will in what they are calling a possible kidnapping or abduction.
Because she has limited mobility, investigators say it is unlikely she left on her own, and authorities have ruled out cognitive impairment.
“This is not dementia-related. She’s as sharp as a tack,” Nanos said.
While authorities have not confirmed what raised suspicions of a crime, theLos Angeles Times reports that blood was discovered on her Tucson’s home front porch. Police sources told the newspaper that investigators have not put forward any theory about why she may have been taken. The blood was reportedly found alongside evidence of forced entry at her Catalina Hills, Arizona, residence, though its origin remains unknown.
According to the New York Post, some of Nancy’s personal items, including her phone, which she wouldn’t leave her home without, were found in her home.
Reports also indicate that a Ring doorbell camera positioned near the entrance was missing, with Nanos confirming that investigators are looking into whether the device was intentionally removed by whoever took her.
At the same time, 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 publication wrote they were unable to confirm whether the email was authentic but said it reads as though the details are known only to those involved. “There’s a dollar demand or else in there. So, we will let you know as this thing kind of develops,” Levin explained.
Authorities with the Pima County Sheriff’s Department acknowledged that “possible random note(s)” have surfaced in connection with the case but stopped short of confirming their legitimacy. Police also refused to confirm whether the note reported by TMZ is real or the work of a hoaxer.
Savannah Guthrie, who has been absent from the Today show since her mother’s disappearance, asked the public to pray for her mother.
“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.”
Please SHARE this article with your family and friends on Facebook.
Bored Daddy
Love and Peace
