The Abduction Captivating the Nation

The morning of February 1st, Annie Guthrie, daughter of Nancy Guthrie, received a call from one of her mother’s friends voicing concerns about the fact that Nancy, who was normally very punctual, had never showed up to a church sanctioned event and wasn't answering her phone. Annie rushed to her mothers to find an eerily empty house. It seemed Nancy Guthrie had disappeared.

According to authorities, Nancy Guthrie, the 84-year-old mother of Savannah Guthrie, the anchor of NBC’s “Today” show, was last seen the previous night by her son-in-law, Tommaso Cioni, when he dropped Nancy off at her Tucson home. When local law enforcement arrived, shortly after Annie Guthrie discovered her mother’s empty house, they found Nancy’s phone, wallet, hearing aid, daily medication, and car still on the property; however, her doorbell camera had been taken. Spatters of blood were also discovered on the porch, which DNA analysis later confirmed to belong to Nancy Guthrie. Sheriff Chris Nanos of Pima County, Arizona, believes Guthrie was abducted in the early hours of February 1st, specifically around 2:28 a.m. when her pacemaker was separated from her phone. Just 41 minutes before, Guthrie’s front door camera was disconnected.

Following the initial investigation Sheriff Chris Nanos spoke with The New York Times who reported that investigators would spend the following days “combing through the home, its garage and the surrounding scrubland” after finding “worrying signs of violence at Ms. Guthrie’s home." Roughly 24 hours after Guthrie was officially reported missing KOLD, a Tucson television station, received a ransom note allegedly from the kidnapper. Both law enforcement and TMZ, a celebrity gossip publication, received copies of the note which supposedly demanded millions of dollars in bitcoin in exchange for the return of Ms. Guthrie. According to NBC, the FBI revealed the note included two deadlines and referred to an Apple Watch worn by Guthrie but did not establish a way to communicate. The legitimacy of any ransom note is being contested as Nancy has previously appeared on “Today” show segments with her daughter making details of the case and Guthrie's life easily accessible.

Law enforcement officials have released footage of a man in a ski mask and gloves, carrying what appears to be a handgun tampering with Guthrie’s doorbell just hours before the estimated time of her abduction. On February 12th, as police officers were working to find the source of the man’s clothing, discarded gloves that appeared to match the ones worn by the man in the surveillance video were discovered in a field just two miles from Nancy’s home. DNA found on the glove has been sent into a database in an effort to identify the individual.

Savannah Guthrie and her siblings have released multiple videos to the public pleading for their mothers safe return and even made a $500,000 donation to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children while offering a $1 million dollar cash reward. Additionally, the FBI reward for information leading to an arrest in the case has doubled to $100,000. As of March 3rd there still haven't been any developments in the case.