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

[Starkville]

Just adding this screengrab from my TV for whatever it’s worth. This shows how close neighbors were, and a general overview of the immediate area around NG’s house and property. I’ve seen many comments elsewhere (not Websleuths) that assume the home is secluded and out in the desert. Local Websleuths have commented that it’s actually quite close to “civilization”. The house seems to enjoy some privacy, but it’s not in the middle of nowhere!

 

[Izzylizzy]

My current theory: FM needs money now. Maybe asked for it at dinner but she said no. Took her home. Went back to their own home but it festered with FM that they needed money, so went back to Nancy's house. Probably has key. Maybe went in and proceeded to wake her up and force her to leave house. Maybe faking a family emergency, got to leave NOW!? Perhaps a bit of a struggle going out the door when Nancy wanted to go back in and put real clothes on and something happened and Nancy got hurt and that was blood outside. (Barney Fife did not mention ANY blood inside the house.) Took Nancy out to dessert and killed her. Maybe as simple as a bag over her head. Maybe left back door open and her still in her pajamas to look like she just wandered off, so maybe she's not too far in the dessert. (Only heard of aerial searches of dessert nearby -- no ground searches to my knowledge. With all the brush, she could be under a bush of some sort.) Gives off the implication that "she must have gotten confused and wandered off and then just "died" in the dessert." Honestly, if it wasn't the big news media, that might have been the end of it all. But then it quickly became a hot news item. Sooo many people came on tv quickly to say that there was no way she could wander off, so quickly it became a crime scene instead of just wandering off in what family member wanted. I think all the ransom notes are not real. We already have one person arrested for making a fake one. Nowadays with crypto, it could easily be some teenage boy in Russia making these other messages. Someone said she was on Facebook. Maybe the blackmailer saw something in one of her Facebook pics that he uses as "personal information" to prove he was in house even though he never was. FM needs Nancy to be found so that inheritance can happen quickly. My dad has all his money in a trust so that when he passes, my sister and I have access to it all immediately without probate. I think the car was seen on Circle K going by twice in the 2:00ish hours of the morning. But if it was Nancy's car, then maybe they used that for transport. Perhaps garage door was manually opened slowly if her garage door is like mine and motor is way too loud and would make an awful noise in the quiet of the neighborhood at that time. But not sure why blood would be in driveway...

Who is "FM"?

 

[Cassie P]

I agree they appear to be passive blood drops as she stood at the front door area bleeding. There is what appears to me to be a projected/impact spatter to the right of the mat - meaning a force coming in to contact with an already actively bleeding source. Although, it is possible that it could be aspirated blood from a couch or sneeze while actively bleeding. Hopefully LE tested that area to determine if there was air/mucus mixed in with the blood. Poor Nancy.

I am late to the blood spatter discussion, there are so many posts to keep up with!
So sorry to ask a question that may have already be answered.

So we are looking at a force coming at NG on the porch while she was already bleeding. And she could have been standing or lying on the ground?

Or maybe she coughed or sneezed meaning no blow on the porch?

But she could have been injured in the house and then injured again on the porch?
Where on the body would the blood have been coming from?

 

[BigCityAccountant]

What could be in NG's car that shouldn't be? Someone's DNA? There'd be a plausible explanation for any family member, imo, so not looking for evidence of one of them. Data showing it went somewhere on that night?

Just catching up here...Her car is important because its being reported that the watch was found in the car. They are looking for perps DNA when the watch was placed in the car. Hopefully they have found a profile for the perp.

 

[Sadi]

Could have been separated at some other location and phone/watch brought back to her house

Good point

 

[smileyface516]

Who is "FM"?

Probably family member

 

[Elley Mae]

Do we know of any cases where someone was returned alive after a ransom was paid? Im struggling to think of any.

J paul getty’s grandson was returned after his ear was cut off.

Jmo

 

[Cassie P]

Criminal profiling continues to make advancements year after year in this field. They study crime scene behavior and offer advice to assist LE in narrowing down a suspect pool. You can't dismiss them outright as they are one of many investigative tools in any LE officers toolbox to utilize during investigations.

I agree.

 

[thefragile7393]

Just adding this screengrab from my TV for whatever it’s worth. This shows how close neighbors were, and a general overview of the immediate area around NG’s house and property. I’ve seen many comments elsewhere (not Websleuths) that assume the home is secluded and out in the desert. Local Websleuths have commented that it’s actually quite close to “civilization”. The house seems to enjoy some privacy, but it’s not in the middle of nowhere!

exactly true. There's a lot of assumptions about Arizona and Tucson in general that make me chuckle....

 

[cady]

AB says her source - VERY high level/at the top, is ALL IN on the BIL being the one.
We don't know, as far as I know, that the source is LE.
Bc I wonder why LE would want to plant that info out there ?

Her source could be someone in the fed govt who has shown an interest. Perhaps her spurce is the person who just remarked on the case yesterday evening

JMO

Agree. FED GOV and not directly on the ground investigating........just shooting mouth off......JMO

 

[judithannegg]

Who is "FM"?

Family member

 

[tkcrockett]

Just catching up here...Her car is important because its being reported that the watch was found in the car. They are looking for perps DNA when the watch was placed in the car. Hopefully they have found a profile for the perp.

do you have a link to watch being found in car? That doesn't sound right to me

 

[EightiesBoo]

There have been instances of LE pretending to do things for the medias sake to keep them occupied while the real investigation is happening elsewhere. I can’t remember the exact case of this but watched something recently. Like shining flashlights in the brush or just walking around with clipboards, could all be distractions. I hope that they have real leads!

 

[shadowsc]

I have seen reporting that the first ransom note mentioned the Apple Watch. But I haven't seen reporting that the note specified the exact location of the watch inside her home. I've also seen reporting that the watch was left behind. My overall point though is that the abductor knowing about the watch does not suggest one way or another that someone close to Nancy is involved.

Here are some things that were reported from the first ransom note:

The most striking element of the first ransom note was its inclusion of specific details about Nancy Guthrie’s Apple Watch and a floodlight at her home that authorities had not made public, law enforcement officials confirmed.

“In the first note, they mention an Apple Watch,” Levin told NewsNation. “It says where the Apple Watch was located, and it was not in a place that you would necessarily immediately think, and that seemed to pique the FBI’s interest.”

What we know about the ransom notes in the Nancy Guthrie case

Both TMZ and KOLD representatives said wording in the messages suggests the sender has familiarity with the Tucson area.

www.newsnationnow.com

 

[Sadi]

I have to think that, in general, 2 people would be more likely than 1 if a possibly unconscious or disabled Nancy was carried from her house and to a vehicle. If Nancy wasn't walking out herself, but was being carried out, that could explain the blood spatter. Whoever was carrying her out may have taken little care to prevent impacts to her body as she was being removed from the house.

It would be difficult for 1 person to carry her out - she's probably at least 100 pounds, probably more - and then get her into a vehicle. It is possible for 1 strong, likely male individual, but awkward. Doors need to be opened and closed. It could be done, but with 2 people it would much quicker and easier.

I lean against this being a real kidnapping. I think there was some kind of family dispute over money or inheritance, and violence occurred.

It's my opinion that Nancy is no longer alive, and that the kidnapping is some kind of hoax.

Right and the sheriff saying she did not leave on her own, she didn’t walk out of there speaks volumes.

 

[Cardgame]

7 Feb 2026 rbbm.

Blood droplets, a white van, a ransom note: where is Savannah Guthrie’s mother?

The astonishing case of the missing Today morning show anchor’s mom is six days in so far and without resolution

www.theguardian.com

''The Guthrie case is both old-fashioned – a ransom note sounds almost quaint – and what might have once been a demand for a suitcase of cash in non-sequential, used, small-denomination bills at a drop-off is now a transfer of cryptocurrency.
In December, the FBI warned that people posing as kidnappers can provide what appears to be a real photo or video of a loved one, along with demands for money''

Bryanna Fox, a former FBI profiler and professor of criminology at the University of South Florida who has previously appeared on NBC’s Today show with Savannah Guthrie, says the case is indeed perplexing.

“I’ve never seen a case where the ransom notes were sent to the media and the family’s response was not done at a press conference but posted on Instagram,” she says. “The ransom itself was not asked for as cash in a bag, and we can’t even rely on the ransom is real and proof of life is real because of artificial intelligence.

“And all of it – Bitcoin, AI, TMZ and Instagram – wrapped together in a conversion of pop culture things,” Fox adds.
Then, naturally, there is a political fringe to it. Almost as soon a Guthrie’s disappearance became public, there was speculation online of involvement of the Mexican cartels operating the border. Had Guthrie tipped off would-be abductors when she invited Today cameras in her mother’s home months ago?''

Has anyone got a link to that Today segment?

 

[waldojabba]

Who is "FM"?

@Izzylizzy
I think FM = maybe Family Member ?JMO

 

[katydid23]

This is what I've been pondering - I just can't imagine this interaction lasting only 2 minutes. I recall someone saying maybe they went through the garage door with her then exited another way. This could make sense except there is no mention of it in the timeline. It very specifically notes just the garage door.

She would likely move slowly or at least slower than someone with more stability on their feet, even just getting out of the car, saying goodbyes as you said. I just feel like 2 minutes doesn't seem right. Maybe it is, maybe the routine is she just likes to get herself in on her own and immediately turns and closes the garage door. But I'm thinking when someone drops me off, I will often wait until they are reversing or driving off to wave goodbye. Even that would add some time to it.

I keep bouncing between ransom versus these pieces of information and just can't make sense of it all

Also, with an 84 yr old woman, at 9:30 at night, she is going to be tired. I'd walk my mom all the way into her home, turn on the lights, and settle her in for a minute or two. It is sad to think about what ended up happening, whatever it was....

 

[turaj]

can it be determined how long the blood was there?

I have been wondering about that. Usually I would think they can not only match the blood to NG but how old is it? From the description of her medical condition and photos (one with bandaid and one with SG and NG in blue top and her left arm in all bruised...a clear sign that she bleeds easily. It could be from another time and just not gotten it cleaned up yet given she mostly uses garage door?

 

[Aphrodite Jones]

SO -- I've waited before making any comment because I felt we were all rushing to judgement. It's a human reaction to pin the crime on one of the nearest relatives, but it can also backfire. I know Savannah personally, and the last thing I want to do is bring more pain to the Guthrie family. Imagine if your mom was abducted and the public was pointing the finger at you. The sting would be that much greater.
All that said, as of this AM, they have collected the elusive white van
and as you all know, a second note was sent to KOLD yesterday which has been verified as coming from the same encrypted server. This note apparently made contact with the family, responding to the videos made by Savannah and her siblings. We now have President Trump indicating that officials are close to identifying the abductor or abductors. The horrible thing now, of course, is that we have no proof of life. I PRAY that Nancy is alive after being without her meds for 7 days. It is totally possible. Let's remember that. In fact, billboards are now being put up in AZ and surrounding states asking for the public's help. The hard question now is: WOULD YOU HIT SEND to give millions in crypto to this abductor before the deadline on Monday? If no one is caught this weekend, Savannah will be struggling with the possibility that non-payment could mean death for her mom... MY HEART IS BREAKING FOR HER...
(Mod note: Aphrodite's source has retracted the statement about the van. Please CLICK HERE to read Aphroditie's post)