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

[Cassie P]

It really is utter nonsense isn't it? Lifelong non-criminals - even some prior FBI agents - insisting they are the authority on what is or is not criminal chic, and presenting theories to the world derived whole cloth from their purely aesthetic biases and/or fantasies of what an 'actual criminal' looks like or would wear.

He could've shown up on the porch donning a Hamburglar costume and still no one could deny that this crime was executed with a high degree of precision and 'better than most' sophistication.

I've always been concerned that the assumptions drawn from all of these ex-law enforcement types were the same instinctive inferences drawn by current law enforcement. If so, the belief that this criminal or these criminals isn't/aren't sophisticated is probably why no one has been caught yet.

JMO.

This is the point of looking at lantana man's presentation. To get a better understanding of who he is and how his mind works.

The clothing tells us he planned this crime meticulously and at a high level. He chose everything he wore for a reason.

I think dismissing the evidence in the video out of hand would be FBI malpractice.

 

[scandiamerican]

It is an odd situation, Ivan Miller (I guess I should say allegedly) murdering three women in Utah apparently in order to steal their cars? It’s easy for me to want to feel like every not-ancient guy with two eyes could be Lantana Man. Sigh.

3 Utah women were killed at random for their vehicles, police say

An Iowa man has been arrested in Colorado following an intense manhunt and accused of killing three women at random in southern Utah.

www.ksl.com

 

[MrsEmmaPeel]

New member here with a motive theory. Nancy had flood lights in her yard and connected to her house - some were destroyed, possibly the one by her door was destroyed by the perp. Destroyed flood light was referenced in the ransom message (the ransom message was likely a ruse to confuse the investigation but could have been sent by the perp) Where Nancy lived there is an ordinance that controls lighting to ensure the area is dark for nighttime viewing of stars/landscape, etc. There are strict rules for compliance but if someone is not compliant, law enforcement will not get involved - it becomes a civil matter which makes disputes very hard to resolve. Could it be that the lighting around her home was disturbing someone in the area? Disputes over such issues can blow up. If you google flood lighting and murders - you'll see that such disputes have resulted in murder.

Perhaps Nancy, a very nice/lovely person, had been confronted by someone over her flood lighting and she stood her ground. I do not know if her lighting was such that it would cause issues, maybe this should be looked into?

I doubt your theory only because of what, I believe, SG has said of her mother. About how much she loved the land and the place of Tucson-- and how many years she's been there. People who feel that way like the dark sky ordinances and defend them. They have motion sensor lights if they have outdoor lighting and/or are very sensitive to neighbors and placement etc. Of course, this is a generalization but in my experience, imo, it has been true. Outsiders are the ones who come in and want things to be different. Brighter, greener, louder, more trees. (Welcome to WS.)

 

[Lebowski]

There's a photo here:

Investigation continues after Wayne County triple murder suspect arrested - KSLNewsRadio

The Wayne County Sheriff's Office advised all residents "take extra precautions, keep lights on, keep doors locked, and remain home or with others" on Wednesday evening.

kslnewsradio.com

This photo is the same but might be slightly clearer/larger:

https://www.cnn.com/2026/03/05/us/utah-women-deaths-wayne-county

if people are comparing this to lantana man...

hard to be sure, but i think this suspect has some kind of orbital asymmetry -- left eye slightly higher or differently shaped. IMO, we don't see that in the clearest stills of lantana man.

also, lantana man planned a lot and is cautious in the video. this perp in the other case... whatever his motives, he does not seem cautious and his actions do not seem planned, at least not in detail.

 

[ms-t]

Just a thought....has anyone looked into the fact that Nancy's house was up for sale and then unlisted? That means that others would have had the keys to the home possibly? Presumably real estate agents have been encouraged to check their unoccupied properties?

Great point! I wonder how far she got in the potential house sale process? Did potential buyers actually go through the house? Were there open house events? Just thinking here ...

 

[SMK777]

I saw the story before I went to sleep last night. At that time they had cancelled school for Thursday and Friday and the person hadn't been caught. I just looked for the article I saw last night and it's been updated to show the alleged killer.

Investigation continues after Wayne County triple murder suspect arrested - KSLNewsRadio

The Wayne County Sheriff's Office advised all residents "take extra precautions, keep lights on, keep doors locked, and remain home or with others" on Wednesday evening.

kslnewsradio.com

What a strange story! And the killer only 22, and if you passed him on the street would assume is an ok guy. I wonder if they are looking for a connection?

 

[Bluewing3102]

https://twitter.com/x/status/2029615801771466849

 

[Diddian]

I can't help but wonder if there were any unsolved murders in that part of Alaska back in July. And if he's a so-called drifter, his drifting radius seems pretty wide. I definitely think they should be asking him where he was about a month ago.

I can't find out how he killed his victims, but I haven't delved that deeply.

At the very least, it appears this young man was killing his three female victims to take their vehicles.

NG's vehicle was left sitting in her garage.

 

[Forest_Wood]

Just a thought....has anyone looked into the fact that Nancy's house was up for sale and then unlisted? That means that others would have had the keys to the home possibly? Presumably real estate agents have been encouraged to check their unoccupied properties?

A random thought that keeps popping into my head. JMO MOO IMO and all that jazz.

I have thought the same that keeps popping into my head too! It was reported her home had been listed a second time in 2024 and I can’t find that article to source. That means real estate agents as well as prospective buyers had easy access to view the cameras, layout, lighting and so on with plenty of opportunity to case the property. MOO

 

[submarine7]

It is an odd situation, Ivan Miller (I guess I should say allegedly) murdering three women in Utah apparently in order to steal their cars? It’s easy for me to want to feel like every not-ancient guy with two eyes could be Lantana Man. Sigh.

3 Utah women were killed at random for their vehicles, police say

An Iowa man has been arrested in Colorado following an intense manhunt and accused of killing three women at random in southern Utah.

www.ksl.com

It really underscores the fact that his look is not unique.

 

[MrsEmmaPeel]

Was Nancy's house ever for sale or is this conjecture?

 

[MassGuy]

https://twitter.com/x/status/2029610833693528535

 

[LRinCA]

Was Nancy's house ever for sale or is this conjecture?

You can see the price history here. Listings are included:

https://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-detail/5820-N-Camino-Escalante_Tucson_AZ_85718_M25791-20168

 

[MerlinFalcon]

https://twitter.com/x/status/2029615801771466849

I’m glad he mentioned it because I’ve been watching them on you tube. I wonder if the fbi has taken over as primary.

 

[VeronicaVaughn]

DBM.

 

[OldCop]

the facial hair under the mask looked painted on, possibly tatooed not like real facial hair at all. mOO

This is available on Amazon. I’m sure there are many of similar type sold in costume shops, party stores, etc. I’m not sold on a double mask theory, but it certainly possible.

 

[Kapua]

Even a bright, talented, highly educated non criminal is going to make mistakes. Like the vascular surgeon who killed the Tepe's.

I agree, we can no longer say that in the Guthrie case the perp is a kid, a druggie, an impulse crime, a street person, inexperienced, etc. You don't evade the FBI and 400 agents for this long if that were the case?

Most first time criminals, no matter how smart, make mistakes. So I am going to guess this is the not the first crime the guy has committed. At the least he had to do some dry runs, practice sessions.

Yes a methodical person. Meticulous about detail. Planned it carefully ahead of time. Often first time criminals plan the crime itself but not the exit plan. This guy planned it all looks like.

<modsnip>

The guy in this case is a careful thinker, but wider in scope that most deep thinkers. There are a lot of moving parts to this crime, many different pieces and he appears to have done well with all of them. Perhaps there is more than one person involved.

There were many things that worked in favor of the criminal - a dark neighborhood with houses spaced far apart. The houses are set back from the road, so cars on the roads would not be captured by cameras mounted on the houses. A victim who was easy to overcome. The victim's camera video was not saved (but fortunately, experts were able to reconstruct a portion of it). If I were a neighbor, I would be upgrading my security system yesterday. The neighbors should all get together and install cameras on every road going into and out of the neighborhood. The whole world now knows how vulnerable they are. All the criminal needed to do to pull this off is not bring his cell phone with him. I can't say he's smart, but I do think he is observant. MOO

 

[Napoli]

No I do not think an academic. I would be quite surprised if this were the case. People who spent most of their life in graduate or professional school could not have pulled off this crime. They are brilliant in a few narrow areas, but clueless about the rest of the world. And have missed out on a lot of social media and pop culture. They don't have street smarts because they never had time to be on the street with their wider peer group. You can see how this hurt the Tepe murderer.

Academics Convicted of Murder Lets' add Ted Kaczynski to this too

• Bryan Kohberger (2022–Present): A Ph.D. student in criminology at Washington State University, he was arrested for the stabbing deaths of four University of Idaho students and pleaded guilty in 2025.
• Wyndham Lathem (2017): A Northwestern University microbiology professor who, along with Oxford University employee Andrew Warren, was charged with the murder of a man in Chicago.
• Valery Fabrikant (1992): A mechanical engineering professor at Concordia University in Montreal who shot and killed four colleagues.
• John Webster (1849): A Harvard Medical School chemistry professor who murdered a prominent Boston physician over a debt, a case famous for its use of circumstantial evidence.
• Bruce Reilly (1990s): Convicted of murder as a young man, he later became an academic, researcher, and law school graduate working on criminal justice reform.

High IQ people are often profoundly isolated in social life. Isolated doesnt mean they aren't street smart . You dont have to be raised on the street to out think LE. Plus, look at all the bazillions of abductions and murders that have not been solved.

A blanket statement like this perp isnt an academic because he was too busy in school doesnt compute for me. Lots of serial killers are whacko nurses, for example. Years in school. Decide to inject some substance in people to enjoy the thrill of the code blue or the control over life and death. Evil is Evil. Unsolved crimes abound. This perp is smarter or at least more goal oriented than the average Joe. JMO

 

[VegasGirl35]

Following the case on this forum, I've enjoyed reading everyone's thoughts and theories, and have learned so much. I'm curious though, if/when they find the perpetrator(s), do you guys think it's going to end up being super obvious or someone that'll shock the world?

I just keep thinking of all the true crime shows I've watched where the killer was someone nobody suspected.

 

[moonglow123]

There were many things that worked in favor of the criminal - a dark neighborhood with houses spaced far apart. The houses are set back from the road, so cars on the roads would not be captured by cameras mounted on the houses. A victim who was easy to overcome. The victim's camera video was not saved (but fortunately, expert were able to reconstruct a portion of it). If I were a neighbor, I would be upgrading my security system yesterday. The neighbors should all get together and install cameras on every road going into and out of the neighborhood. The whole world now knows how vulnerable they are. All the criminal needed to do to pull this off is not bring his cell phone with him. I can't say he's smart, but I do think he is observant. MOO

Yeah. No one could’ve predicted that this would be happen. But I know if I were one of her neighbors I’d be racing to put up security cams by the road!

It’s crazy that he’s gotten away with this so far simply because the neighborhoods are so dark and getting camera footage of passing vehicles is spotty or impossible.