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

[shonyakay]

This seems like a movie playing out in real life.

4 hours and 5 minutes until the ransom letter's deadline.
(MST)

The greatest outcome would be that Nancy is still alive. I hope that is the case.

 

[vlbay]

They're rare and they often target famous people.

NG just happened to be the mother of SG. I really don't think SG's mother is famous. Heck, SG is famous but isn't that famous. Yes, journalists are under attack these days, but not like this and SG is pretty much neutral. There are plenty who aren't neutral and they are either loved or hated. But I see SG as neutral. (It's probably part of the NBC ethics since NBC is not cable and subject to FCC restrictions, cable is not) Some journalists aren't even registered to vote.

Anyway, even if a journalist is hated, well they did do a job on Charlie Kirk. He was sort of a journalist. Still, he wasn't kidnapped for ranson. He was brutally murdered by someone who became angry over his influence. (Rage was the motive, not money)


Rich and famous would be someone like Brad Pitt or the head of a huge company or something. I remember when that stalker killed the actress from my Sister Sam. (Money wasn't the motive) I just don't see journalists as "Rich". Yes. well off, but just not rich enough to go through all this trouble.

I could still see it being someone who is obsessed with/wants attention from/wants to hurt or inflict pain on SG. They are local to Tucson and can't reach SG in New York, so they decide to target her family. Maybe they've been stalking both her sister and her mother for a while now. They pick last weekend ahead of SG leaving for Italy and abduct NG.

Sending ransom notes to TMZ ensures maximum publicity of SG's pain. If they really wanted money, they would've contacted her privately and told her not to involve LE. But the way they went about it (TMZ and two local stations) feels like the person wants attention that they can watch on TV and they also want SG to make videos pleading for them to let NG go. It's not really about money--its about spectacle and control and inflicting pain on a person they've become fixated on (the reason could be quasi-political, romantic, or some kind of delusion we couldn't guess).

 

[Walela]

Maybe there was going to be a shout out for her birthday? It was three days prior.

So.... SG could have been referring to a birthday celebration when she used the phrase "celebrate with her" in the message. Makes sense.

 

[ttjo]

I thought the world’s "this" refers to having her back. (Having her back is the only way we will have peace.)

or that paying the ransom and doing everything they can will give them peace of mind? (no regret)
This thread moves so fast someone may have already said this.

 

[mikeshanty]

So.... SG could have been referring to a birthday celebration when she used the phrase "celebrate with her" in the message. Makes sense.

Yeh, and maybe part of the ransom communication referred to someone specific about what NG did for her birthday or something.

 

[Vegasgrl]

You don’t send a ransom days after the fact and add that you won’t hear from them again. It makes no sense. A robbery gone wrong doesn’t make sense as nothing, that we know of, was taken. Even if you had a serial killer, they’re not going to take the body with them.

add that you won't hear from them again - then hear from them again

 

[Cipher Vale]

So.... SG could have been referring to a birthday celebration when she used the phrase "celebrate with her" in the message. Makes sense.

Or celebrating her release

 

[sony12]

Is there a good chance at this point they never identify any suspects or make any arrests for this?

 

[BrittMontero]

You don’t send a ransom days after the fact and add that you won’t hear from them again. It makes no sense. A robbery gone wrong doesn’t make sense as nothing, that we know of, was taken. Even if you had a serial killer, they’re not going to take the body with them.

Exactly. It’s like the JonBenet case. Nothing makes sense.

Why wouldn’t kidnappers make a quick and easy to fulfill demand? With a short deadline.

Giving a week+ to fulfill a digital ransom is just nonsensical.

Anyone with SG’s wealth and connections can rustle up millions of dollars within hours. Financial institutions would be quick to advance the money.

 

[DS2021]

Is there a good chance at this point they never identify any suspects or make any arrests for this?

I think its far too early to say that

 

[SMK777]

Is there a good chance at this point they never identify any suspects or make any arrests for this?

I sure hope not.
It's something to worry about, though.

 

[shonyakay]

Is there a good chance at this point they never identify any suspects or make any arrests for this?

Like the DB Cooper case? I certainly hope not.

 

[SRWCF]

You don’t send a ransom days after the fact and add that you won’t hear from them again. It makes no sense. A robbery gone wrong doesn’t make sense as nothing, that we know of, was taken. Even if you had a serial killer, they’re not going to take the body with them.

I'm with you about the ransom appearing days later. I don't think we know if an initial ransom was sent immediately to the family, or not. DEVIL'S ADVOCATE: Maybe the kidnappers didn't like the fact that LE hadn't announced an original ransom, so they figured they'd go through TMZ, knowing they'd probably release it to the public.

I'm still entirely baffled why people believe it could all be a hoax. NG was obviously taken from her home - call it what you want, a kidnapping or abduction. If LE thought they were dealing with a homicide, they definitely wouldn't have NG's kids pleading for her return on national television all these days later. Regardless whether NG is alive or not (I hope the latter isn't the case), it would be difficult for kidnappers to care for an immobile, 84-year old woman with a pacemaker, in need of daily medication. You know what else would be difficult? Removing a body from her home, then trying to find a place to hide it.

FWIW, I am totally stumped.

 

[shadowsc]

don't you think that would have been one of the first people they interviewed? and that it hasn't been clarified because it's not relevant? if it was important to the case, it would be one of the easiest leads to follow and we wouldn't be nine days into this case with three video pleas to a kidnapper and billboards all over the southwest.

It may not be complicated at all. But because there are two different versions out there (Version 1: Sheriff, first press conference saying, "Someone didn't see her at church and called the family" and the NY Times saying, "Someone didn't see her in a church pew and said hey, where's mom, we better call her family" and Version 2: The Daily Mail and also Brian Entin's producers saying the church pastor said Nancy hasn't been in person since Covid), it keeps circulating here.

Every 20 pages someone asks, "Wait, I thought she didn't go in person??" "The NY Times said she wasn't in a pew" "The hoax ransom guy's criminal complaint says a family at church told the family" "The Daily Mail says she hasn't been attending church in person since Covid." "Brian Entin's producers said the pastor told him directly." And everyone is correct, and even quotes a credible source. It may make zero difference to the case and be of zero relevance. It's just causing constant rehashing here, because information is conflicting.

 

[HoveringWombats]

I was about to write something about how we really can't take conclusions from how previous cases have gone, because this case is so unlike anything we've seen before. But then I remembered, so many cases seem "unlike anything we have seen" until the truth comes out and most of them actually are the same; we just can't see it because we don't have enough details...

Maybe this one really is different. It still feels different to me. But I am trying to remind myself how little we know, and how novel things turn out to be very ordinary once the veil of confusion is lifted.

 

[LetsSolvIt]

I’ve mentioned that I live in NG’s neighborhood. Several people here as well as folks I know who live close to main roads, even outside of this neighborhood, had LE visits over the weekend. They want footage from any cameras facing these main roads: Oracle road and 1st Ave are the two I can personally confirm.

I am so surprised they waited almost a week to start what sounds like serious canvasing of the neighborhood.
Apologize if they did do some earlier surveys and I didn't see the post -- I've had to skip a lot of pages since this thread is moving so quickly.
OMO.

 

[Diddian]

Except…if we all are now going to accept the Callela Criminal Complaint as absolute truth (as we seem to be doing with the “contact” from the church), the first sentence says, “N.G. was last seen inside her residence in the Catalina Foothills community outside Tucson, Arizona, on January 31, 2026.” Not sure how anyone would have “seen” NG in her residence unless she herself entered the garage. I’d post a link to the complaint but it has been posted here numerous times already.

moo.

BBM. January 31, 2026 is a 24-hour period from 12 am on Saturday until immediately before 12 am on Sunday. NG may have been seen inside her residence by anyone she had inside during those hours (friend, family member, service person). The statement does NOT indicate that NG was seen by her family members inside the residence on January 31 after 9:48 pm.

As for the statement about "contact" from the church, LE had a statement from a member of NG's family that this contact occurred and they may have depended upon that statement for the Callela Criminal Complaint (dated February 5). It does not mean that they consider that a reliable statement at this time as more investigation has likely occurred in the intervening 4 days.

At the present time LE is neither confirming nor denying the contact about NG not being at church as expected; they are not addressing the subject.

I am feeling like it is important to be VERY PRECISE about evidence because IMO there may be substantial misdirection involved in this case and we are learning that officers who may been the earliest at the scene of NG's home and interviewing family members did not likely have substantial years of experience (see Tricia's live YouTube last night, where she played video of Brian Entin's interview of a retired detective who recently retired after 20 years with the Sheriff's office there and 7 of those years as a homicide detective). Early statements taken as truth may have not survived that determination as true after greater scrutiny and investigation by more experienced LE.

 

[shonyakay]

Ya'll if this is a legit kidnapping after all AB's got some 'splaining to do honey.

 

[detective.moon]

I feel we've exhausted every avenue right now. There is simply no further information coming out at the moment.

maybe it’s time to throw in another poll? i wonder what we’ll know by the end of this day..

react to this post with a
if you expect that it will become clear(er) what has happened
if you expect that it will only become more confusing
if you expect radio silence today
if you really don’t know what to think

 

[Deleted member 117884]

You know what else would be difficult? Removing a body from her home, then trying to find a place to hide it.

snipped

Yes, that is difficult, but how many cases have we followed where bodies are found hidden outdoors somewhere. FAR MORE than kidnap-for-bitcoin cases.

Having said that, I have no idea what happened or how this will turn out.

jmo