Nancy Guthrie, the 84-year-old mother of NBC’s Today show anchor Savannah Guthrie, has been missing since January 31.
Nancy was last seen in the Catalina Foothills, and authorities have been searching for her ever since. It has been reported that she and her daughter Anne, Savannah sister, had dinner together in the evening of January 31, and Anne dropped her off at home at around 9:30 p.m.
The following morning, Nancy failed to show up at church, something not typical for her, after which concerns were raised. She was officially reported missing by Sunday noon.
“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.
Now, Wallace Zeins, who spent years negotiating high-stakes abductions for the NYPD, has given his outlook on the investigation.
In an interview, Zeins said that given her physical state, a solo abduction of Nancy seems almost impossible.
“She is 150 pounds, 5 feet 5, waking up in the middle of the night, not in the best health, cannot walk or run, so I would think there is more than one person involved in this particular crime,” Zeins told CNN.
Although authorities haven’t disclosed what prompted concerns of a crime, the Los Angeles Times reports that blood was found on the front porch of Nancy Guthrie’s Tucson home. According to police sources cited by the newspaper, investigators have not proposed any explanation for why she might have been taken. The blood reportedly appeared alongside signs of forced entry at her Catalina Hills, Arizona, residence, though its source is still unknown.
During the search of her home, authorities found Nancy’s Apple watch and revealed that her pacemaker stopped syncing with the device around 2:00 a.m. Sunday, a detail that has deeply unsettled investigators.
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.”
According to Zeins, the ransom demands could eventually give investigators a crucial lead. He pointed out that a request for Bitcoin indicates the perpetrators are tech-savvy and may even be active on social media.
If the notes were handwritten, they might contain DNA. If they were typed, Zeins added, they could leave an electronic footprint, something federal authorities are particularly skilled at tracking.
CNN’s Josh Campbell stated that the high-profile nature of Nancy Guthrie’s case could trigger a flood of false or misleading tips to investigators.
“In these high-profile situations, authorities are often flooded with tips — some turn out to be credible, some not so credible and some downright sinister,” Campbell told TV host Jake Tapper on Wednesday.
Offering perspective on kidnappings involving older adults, former FBI profiler Candice DeLong noted that the “vast majority” of victims personally know their abductor.
“There is one thing I’d like to add about kidnapping of elderly people, especially people over 80. In the vast majority of cases, the offender is known to the victim,” DeLong told Tapper on Wednesday.
Police helicopters have been observed scanning the desert near Nancy’s home as part of what Zeins called a “grid search,” a systematic approach designed to ensure every area is thoroughly checked. Investigators are likely assessing whether Nancy was moved through nearby fields or removed directly from the location, Zeins said.
In the meantime, Savannah Guthrie, who has since stepped back from the Today’s show and the role of hosting the 2026 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in Italy, issued an emotional plea.
“At the same time, we live in a world where voices and images can be easily manipulated,” Savannah said in a video. “We need to know, without a doubt, that she is alive and that you have her.”
President Donald Trump reached to Savannah, assuring that he is “deploying all resources to get her mother home safely.”
