AZ Nancy Guthrie, 84, (mother of TODAY Show host Savannah Guthrie) missing - last seen in the Catalina foothills area on Jan 31, 2026

[maskedwoman]

The funny thing about that is Sheriff Nanos said he doesn't eliminate people because what if he clears someone and evidence comes back that they were involved. He used this analogy when talking about CP when a reporter asked if he was cleared.
So when he cleared the family I was confident in that.
I am just confused about them continuing to hold on to that car.
Thanks for answering though. I value your opinion.

I am very puzzled as well. So much of what he has said is contradictory:

1)First he refused to clearly state the family were cleared and LE were all over their neighborhood asking the neighbors questions.
2) As that became a bigger topic of conversation, he said he doesn't like to clear anyone in case test results come back showing otherwise. My first thought was, then why didn't you just say that you wouldn't be clearing anyone until all relevant test results were back?
3)When questions reached somewhat of a crescendo, he firmly stated they were cleared in the first few days. Now, days later, he's still holding a car belonging to family, so clearly all relevant test results are not in.

If I communicated to my boss like that, I'm sure he and I would be having a serious conversation about why I was unable to give him straightforward answers. MOOooo

 

[annpats]

Just read an article talking about how they will look for who had their cell phone off during the time of the crime.

LE will have to go through a lot of data....antenna handshakes with all the phones in the area of NG's house.

This could take a while.

 

[Sakura2Sophia4Lucia]

They could easily open and close it manually. I wouldn't put much stock in the garage door time frame. I go into my house and close friends' houses using the garage keypad and once I'm inside, I automatically close the garage door. Even if I leave again in 5 minutes, I close the garage door for safety reasons. MOO

So, if somebody wanted to hide their movements, the door could be open and closed manually. However, I suspect many of us were not aware that the normal garage door openings and closings were time stamped.

Hard knowing what the perp knew and didn't know regarding garage doors, cell phones, etc.

JMO

 

[warp3dwing]

Since he had cased the house prior to this crime, it would seem smart to buy a burner phone--in case he thought he might end up needing a phone--and leave his phone at home. Hopefully he wasn't using a burner phone. JMO

Exactly. Even burner phones can often be tracked back to the point of sale. My guess is that no phone was brought at all. If the suspect was smart, he'd leave his phone at home on the charger. I'd guess that the closer the suspect lives to Nancy, the less likely the need to bring a phone.

Someone mentioned that the object in the suspect's right jacket pocket might be an Ozark Trail walkie talkie. And I have to admit, the shape does look similar (although I thought it might be a telescoping magnet). That would bypass the need to a mobile phone, but it would put the suspect(s) at risk of having the unencrypted and very public transmissions being picked up by anyone nearby. Then again, if it was just a word or two, it probably wouldn't attract any notice.

 

[girlhasnoname]

Since he had cased the house prior to this crime, it would seem smart to buy a burner phone--in case he thought he might end up needing a phone--and leave his phone at home. Hopefully he wasn't using a burner phone. JMO

They've come a long way in tracing burner phones as well. That was one thing that helped catch the LI Gilgo Beach Serial Killer.

 

[warp3dwing]

If the perp was carrying her over his shoulder, he may have stopped to pull the front door closed behind them so it wouldn’t be noticed as being ajar.

Would you expect more shoeprints if the blood drops preceded Nancy's and/or the suspect's feet? I'm trying to figure out how they'd be able to so deftly dance around the drops in the dark.

 

[Napoli]

We could use that as a brainstorming exercise here - if they arrested someone tomorrow, who would be the least surprising perpetrator for you?

I’ll go first: a neighbor or a neighbor’s adult son who lives within walking distance and tends to keep to themselves.

BBM Least expected? A political cartel or drug cartel based in Mexico.

 

[MrsEmmaPeel]

Personally, I feel like everyone sees these images through a different lens.

This is so true, @VeronicaVaughn. In a way, we all put our individual fears into those images. Not to mention confirmation bias, and seeing what we expect to see. Foreigners, young people, mobsters, psychotics. No matter how clinical we think we are as observers, it's hard to see only what is there.

I've always believed it's a costume. Someone dressing a part. Maybe a woman dressing like a larger man. Maybe a young person dressing like a kidnapper. Maybe a man who wants to terrify. In fact, on my first look, I thought the masked man was wearing glasses. So I gave up. But I can't believe how many interpretations there are.

 

[VegasGirl35]

We could use that as a brainstorming exercise here - if they arrested someone tomorrow, who would be the least surprising perpetrator for you?

I’ll go first: a neighbor or a neighbor’s adult son who lives within walking distance and tends to keep to themselves.

Least surprising: Neighbor of NG, grandson of church friend, individual who did work on the property

Most surprising/plot twist: cartel, someone from Savannah's past, burglar gone awry, neighbor of AG. MOO.

 

[submarine7]

We could use that as a brainstorming exercise here - if they arrested someone tomorrow, who would be the least surprising perpetrator for you?

I’ll go first: a neighbor or a neighbor’s adult son who lives within walking distance and tends to keep to themselves.

I wouldn't be surprised if it's somebody related to her faith. Maybe a fellow parishioner or somebody she crossed paths with at a faith based event.

 

[yurintroubl]

<modsnip: Quoted post was removed>... don't think any SA would have occured during the 41min in the house. Whoever did this would not risk leaving any DNA at the scene nor allowing excess DNA on their person voluntarily.

I think she may have made a break for the front door neccessitating an incapacitating blow followed by a fireman's carry to a waiting vehicle.

 

[whatzthebuzz]

Don't know if this has been suggested, but what if it was a perp with medical knowledge / access that could have immediately sedated her for the purpose of keeping her calm to get her out of the house and where he/they would be keeping her?

Just wondering... based on the plotline of the book I'm currently reading.

 

[submarine7]

This is so true, @VeronicaVaughn. In a way, we all put our individual fears into those images. Not to mention confirmation bias, and seeing what we expect to see. Foreigners, young people, mobsters, psychotics. No matter how clinical we think we are as observers, it's hard to see only what is there.

I've always believed it's a costume. Someone dressing a part. Maybe a woman dressing like a larger man. Maybe a young person dressing like a kidnapper. Maybe a man who wants to terrify. In fact, on my first look, I thought the masked man was wearing glasses. So I gave up. But I can't believe how many interpretations there are.

A similar topic came up awhile back when a poster shared that her husband did not find the guy scary and my male friend had the same reaction. He was no scarier because of the mask. Just a guy in a mask. It's very interesting to analyze perspective and consider how much it impacts events, reactions, and theories.

 

[MrsEmmaPeel]

We could use that as a brainstorming exercise here - if they arrested someone tomorrow, who would be the least surprising perpetrator for you?

I’ll go first: a neighbor or a neighbor’s adult son who lives within walking distance and tends to keep to themselves.

Entitled, <modsnip>, detached from reality opportunist. A gamer, in that they see life as a game: it's only about how you play, plot, and win. For them, this is a caper or romp. Lack of morality. In it for what they thought was easy money.

 

[birdbox]

We could use that as a brainstorming exercise here - if they arrested someone tomorrow, who would be the least surprising perpetrator for you?

I’ll go first: a neighbor or a neighbor’s adult son who lives within walking distance and tends to keep to themselves.

Some local drug user/small dealer, criminal who flies under the radar and may or may not have ties to Mexico who used to be considered a very smart guy in school once upon a time, but got involved in drugs and has been searching for easy target/plan to leverage make cash quick and "easy" but had an epic failure on this first bungled attempt.

 

[MrsEmmaPeel]

A similar topic came up awhile back when a poster shared that her husband did not find the guy scary and my male friend had the same reaction. He was no scarier because of the mask. Just a guy in a mask. It's very interesting to analyze perspective and consider how much it impacts events, reactions, and theories.

WOW. I had nightmares about the figure. When I showed it to my husband, he too thought it scary. I guess my husband is a wimp. (But what you write is so true.)

 

[sds71]

@MattFinnFNC
FBI tells me it has moved some of its Guthrie operation up to the Phoenix office but says its footprint on the ground in Tucson remains the same. FBI says "intel" is operating in PHX and "boots on the ground" in Tucson.

https://twitter.com/x/status/2027094534870716685

 

[Hans Olo]

I think it’s aimed at the media.

Well, that would be a terrible plan. Media is there now, and will likely continue to be.

 

[warp3dwing]

This is so true, @VeronicaVaughn. In a way, we all put our individual fears into those images. Not to mention confirmation bias, and seeing what we expect to see. Foreigners, young people, mobsters, psychotics. No matter how clinical we think we are as observers, it's hard to see only what is there.

I've always believed it's a costume. Someone dressing a part. Maybe a woman dressing like a larger man. Maybe a young person dressing like a kidnapper. Maybe a man who wants to terrify. In fact, on my first look, I thought the masked man was wearing glasses. So I gave up. But I can't believe how many interpretations there are.

I'm with you on the costume/performative theory.

Even if you had never been to Nancy's house before, you can tell it's an upscale neighborhood. The chances of Nancy having at least one security camera is, like, 99%. And if a house has at least one camera, where is it going to be? Front door.

If I were the suspect, I'd hide my face, move off to the side of the camera, and yank it off the mount, or cover it with something more substantial from my bag.

And if I felt the need to cover the camera temporarily, I'd cover the whole thing with my hand, not frame the top of it. Why do that? It's obvious where the camera is. This guy's seen a camera before, right?

All that, plus the getup and silly gun holster makes me think it's a distraction. I don't want to get too far into possible political/ideological motives, but it's crossed my mind.

Otherwise, he's just a foolish and very lucky criminal who somehow hasn't been caught. IMO, of course.

 

[factseeking]

Don't know if this has been suggested, but what if it was a perp with medical knowledge / access that could have immediately sedated her for the purpose of keeping her calm to get her out of the house and where he/they would be keeping her?

Just wondering... based on the plotline of the book I'm currently reading.

There was some talk in this thread early on about a syringe, I think someone was speculating that if he sedated her with a syringe maybe thats where the mixed DNA was.

And that you had the thought from a book you're reading!