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

[Van Helsing]

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

The first report I heard about the ransom e-mail said it mentioned a flood light that did not work, so that's been out there from the beginning. They also speculated that may have been identified from photos on the internet. IMO, unless it was damaged at the time of the abduction, it wouldn't necessarily prove the legitimacy of the ransom e-mail. The apple watch might, unless others, like housekeepers or friends, knew that she always had it charging the same way every night.

 

[Sadi]

Someone posted that AG’s car was towed and also returned, but why isn’t there any proof (picture/video) provided by any news outlet? Neighbors cameras would have this, but not the general public. If AG and the family are no longer staying there, would LE provide them a safe place to stay? S’s security team?

 

[Tealgrove]

Why Nancy Guthrie? What made her a victim in this?

If truly not for ransome, what was the endgame here?

SA that went worse than it would be just because?

Robbery attempt? Nancy woke up and it went sideways.

A grudge centered on Savannah? I just don’t see that.

I think these ransoms attempts are either a badly thought out afterthought or people trying to cash in.

Probably the strangest case I’ve ever followed.

MOO

 

[pixiepixel]

Question for people with knowledge of car mechanics. If a car has not been driven for a long period of time is it possible it will not start easily?

I've certainly had this problem with my 2013 model vehicle. Especially if it's been very cold outside.

 

[korncrasy]

Morning all.

Maybe Nancy's DNA i.e. blood from being transported - either alive or deceased.

If the vehicle of interest that was seen at Circle K was Nancy's, I am not understanding how her vehicle would have gotten back into her garage if the only opening of the garage was at 9:48 p.m. and the only closing was two minutes later at 9:50 p.m.

Maybe there was another opening and closing of the garage Sunday morning that LE just hasn't shared with the public.

Or the vehicle of interest seen at Circle K wasn't Nancy's and belongs to someone else.

I’m thinking the same.The garage door may have opened and closed again (maybe around 2 am ?) and they left it out of the timeline.The car may have been returned then if borrowed.
Did I read her phone was in the car? Was her pacemaker syncing to that phone?

 

[raja]

depends on how long it's been sitting. Years? yes. Weeks? probably will start.

Thank you.

 

[soap mama]

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 source is the person who just remarked on the case yesterday evening

JMO

I've always had mixed feelings about AB, but would hopefully think she wouldn't say anything that could expose her legally

 

[oviedo]

I’m not finding any reports yet of the white van located by LE

Unmarked van seen before Nancy Guthrie’s disappearance: Neighbors

“It was somewhere on that street. It was a white van, full-sized, with no printing on the sides. It was parked on the street,” Brett McIntire said.

www.newsnationnow.com

 

[SaraSmile]

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...

I like this.
Maybe SIL dropped her off after dinner, went in through garage. Then while garage door open( for the 2+ min), maybe Nancy’s car keys in her car, he backed Her car out of garage.
Drove his car home. Close to 2am, he drove back to Nancy’s.
He entered through front door or slider( left open), woke up Nancy, ordered her out from door, she got a little nose bleed on the way. Got into Nancy’s car, drove to desert, dig whole, strangle,
Bury. Drive Nancy’s car back home, put into garage( not sure about extra alert, putting Nancy’s car back into garage, maybe manually open garage? ). Drive his car home. Stage as kidnapper/ ransom.
When it was really a murder.

 

[birdbox]

Will someone type all the details of this case to AI and see what AI thinks??

 

[turaj]

BBM I *REALLY* hope that a reporter asks where NG's cane is next time there is an opportunity. It seems to me that it's whereabouts would be an important detail, but it has never been asked about or mentioned so far that I can find or read. Odd to say the least. im

sorry, but GOP, especially Trump, always whines about the media and being treated badly during debates or interviews. There are so many reporters and news sites that could be targeted and Savannah would be the least of them as she avoids political topics
I doubt that is the motive.

agree the party that does poorly always complains but this one was a very big story..just bringing it up as we have recently had two major murder cases based on very long standing grudges.

 

[thefragile7393]

SG was a moderator in a presidential debate and really got skewered after that from the GOP. I still remember it and did not pay that much attention. It was a big story I think in the lead up to the time Biden won. I don't think this it motivated by that but nothing off the table.

correct-all correct. And no, logically this shouldn't play a part but those who really support one side haven't forgotten this and really are acting ridiculous online IMO. I personally don't think it's part of the issue either, however when it's stated that she "isn't that political," that may be true but we still have to remember one side has some very passionate issues with her still, issues that should be a non-issue IMO.

 

[Sadi]

BBM I *REALLY* hope that a reporter asks where NG's cane is next time there is an opportunity. It seems to me that it's whereabouts would be an important detail, but it has never been asked about or mentioned so far that I can find or read. Odd to say the least. imo

The question can be asked, but might not be answered by LE to keep the details private.

 

[Navillus923]

Watch in the car? Could you please link your source, thank you.

Reported by Who?

 

[Sarahlou]

Looking for a source about the white van. Fact based sourcing is a community rule. Thank you!

She is a verified poster, she doesn't need to add links iirc.

 

[BigCityAccountant1]

There is no way a family member say in passenger seat helped this frail 84 year old woman who requires a cane to walk in just 120 seconds to unbuckle seat belt, grab her belongings in the car, help walk to garage door leading into home, say good bye to love one, then bolt back to car in order to shut garage door 120 seconds after opening. Does not add up

Unless the SIL had something very important to do. Let's say maybe a mistress on the side he wanted to call? Could be possibly SIL and mistress? IDK--just throwing out theories.

 

[Ladyotm]

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!

Thanks for this. Very helpful to see a realistic view of the area surrounding her home. I'm hopeful answers come soon.

 

[dotr]

Has anyone got a link to that Today segment?

For now.. rbbm. snippets.

FBI profiler gives insight into man who 'abducted' Nancy Guthrie from own home

More than 72 hours after the disappearance of Nancy Guthrie, a former FBI special agent, has revealed what she believes is the profile of the 84-year-old's potential abductor

www.irishstar.com

''Speaking to the Daily Mail, Dr Bryanna Fox, a former FBI special agent in the agency's Behavioral Science Unit and criminology professor at the University of South Florida, stated that Guthrie most likely doesn't know her kidnapper.

"If it were a family member or somebody who knows the house, they wouldn't have forced entry," Dr Fox explained. "If she knew them, they would have been likely to have carried out a ruse to get her to go with them and get into the vehicle."

"This was not just a random selection of the victim. This was probably a person or a group of people that selected her, probably cased her pattern of life, what time she goes to sleep, knew that she didn't have security, knew that she lived alone and would be sleeping alone," Dr Fox claimed.''

''However, Chris McDonough, a retired detective with Oceanside PD, instead thinks that Guthrie had "crossed paths" with her abductor at least once before, stating he could be a "gardener or a delivery person."

''Profiling the abductor, Dr Fox believes this is not their first attempt, and thinks they are "a male between the ages of 30 and 45, who has a criminal record, is sophisticated enough to know what law enforcement is going to be looking for, and has committed a series of escalating types of crimes."

 

[thefragile7393]

I've always had mixed feelings about AB, but would hopefully think she wouldn't say anything that could expose her legally

one would think she wouldn't say anything that could expose an investigation or throw someone potentially not guilty under the bus yet that's possibly IMO where we are

 

[turaj]

i have heard nothing about other family in the area. I assume Nancy might have siblings that might still be alive ...other extended family?