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

[Charlot123]

Hi there, I checked the NYT article you mentioned. It was last updated today at 3:52 pm ET. Here is a gift link so you can read the article yourself.

Here's the relevant part about the church member:

Thanks a lot!

I noticed some things.

In the first letter, the press said, the abductors mentioned what NG left at home. Some poster here asked, maybe it was the hairpiece? I said, more likely, it could be a hearing aid or Apple Watch.

After that, the press has mentioned the Apple Watch.

In the article you so generously gifted, they write “They found her phone, wallet, hearing aid, daily medication and car. But they did not find her. They called 911.”

I have no crystal ball! I guessed a hearing aid, that she likely took anticoagulants, asked whether meds were left at home, and Apple Watch.

But what is interesting: yesterday some curious poster here asked about the eyeglasses, if NG left them at home.

It is a great question. I bet she has them. (Even newer fancy cataract surgery seldom allows elderly not to use glasses.)

And, the articles that update their information never mentioned the eyeglasses.

Did Nancy Guthrie not wear them? Are they missing or not?

Did she wear far-sighted ones? If an alive person is kidnapped and kept somewhere, I bet people can live without their hearing aid. With medication, I suspect it was nothing fancy and the kidnappers could obtain them.

But a person needs at least a book to read. An older woman who is anxious? For sure. A Bible, perhaps. And maybe her favorite fiction one.

Did anyone buy glasses for presbyopia of Nancy’s diopter in a pharmacy in Tucson within a certain radius? Did anyone check out a book she liked from a local library?

Did Nancy leave her eyeglasses next to her bed as people do when they fall asleep? Assuming that she was grabbed from her bed, or such?

Or were they simply gone?

(If they are gone, I don’t think that the abductor fetched them, btw.)

I wonder if LE look for NG’s eyeglasses in her daughter’s house?

Did Nancy use glasses playing mahjong?

 

[TheDinks]

But then they just left with one little paper sack. If they found anything, I'd have thought we'd see more activity, the house torn apart, and more things removed.

BBM

...and a LOT of photos

 

[LAhiker]

Interesting. Because I thought it was weird. I find that incredibly enmeshed, that a friend at church would call a daughter about her mother? I would absolutely think nothing about someone missing church.

Of course, the gal who checked on her friend, for not answering her phone, caught Chris Watts, completely off guard. He had no clue police would be at his house the day he killed his wife, Shannon Watts, and two daughters.

I know there's some dispute about NG's actual recent practice with regard to churchgoing. But let's assume that she always goes to church, whether in person or online. Those who know her would also know that she's an older woman with mobility issues. Some may know others in her family, which may be more salient due to the famous daughter.

In that situation, I would think it would be reasonable for them to call a family member if she didn't show up.

I speak as someone originally from a small town, in which people kept track of and looked after each other. I wonder whether her church might function similar to my small town.

JMO

 

[mikeshanty]

But then they just left with one little paper sack. If they found anything, I'd have thought we'd see more activity, the house torn apart, and more things removed.

It's the part about them taking photographs in a darkened room with no lights on. As has been suggested elsewhere, it suggests they were doing luminol testing. They had what they needed on the camera footage.

see 7:01

 

[heli]

Mary Coleman said the 2nd letter was not a ransom and did not say anything to indicate that Nancy was deceased. So - what did it say? Not sure....could have been something that they wanted SG and family to know or something that NG said if she was still alive?

All that being said - the movements of the feds/cops indicates that they are looking for a body and it involves either AG or TC (or both).

Could the second letter let sg & family know they were not in control. The kidnappers are

 

[ivylambs]

Interesting. Because I thought it was weird. I find that incredibly enmeshed, that a friend at church would call a daughter about her mother? I would absolutely think nothing about someone missing church.

Of course, the gal who checked on her friend, for not answering her phone, caught Chris Watts, completely off guard. He had no clue police would be at his house the day he killed his wife, Shannon Watts, and two daughters.

Maybe NG and the friend spoke recently (or the previous Sunday) and acknowledged that they'd see each other at church? It's normal to miss church unannounced, not normal to miss a standing meeting with a friend without saying something. She might have tried to reach Nancy first before the daughter.

 

[Cassie P]

SG did say in their 2nd video "We received your message and we understand". I surmised upthread that that meant she found out her mother didn't make it without her meds the "we understand" part. (JMO)

Then she went on to say "We beg you now to return our mother to us so that we can celebrate with her. This is the only way we will have peace. This is very valuable to us, and we will pay.”

https://people.com/savannah-guthrie-tells-mothers-kidnappers-we-received-your-message-we-will-pay-11901810

So perhaps the message from the kidnappers or extortionists stated that NG did not make it.
There would be no POL.

This means that they never had NG to begin with. These are a secondary set of criminals hoping for a pay day off of the tragedy. Or they are kidnappers and don't intend to return the body or reveal where it is to prevent providing more evidence.

But SG negotiates and says we want the body for proper burial and will send you the money.

 

[Arkay]

Odd coincidence. On February 4,1974, 19-year-old heiress Patty Hearst was kidnapped from her Berkeley, California apartment by the Symbionese Liberation Army (SLA). They initially demanded 2MIO and then 4MIO more..That would be 6MIO .They did demanded the 6MIO of dollars to be provided in food to CA residents.

We know how it’s all ended. However, it’s also caused a huge media frenzy. The media extensively covered the unfolding drama, including the tapes released by the SLA and Hearst’s subsequent radicalization. Legal battles about book/movie rights later followed.

While I do not expect the societal rifts in the NG case or any food distribution, I can see a similar media frenzy ensuing during which some of the bigger TV stations may be offering big money for future licensing fees (interviews, videos, photographs etc.).

Thoughts?

Prayers for Mrs Guthrie,
Nin

I’m not sure if I agree.

Patty Hearst’s situation ended up with her alive and home. The radicalization of a young heiress added the drama. We weren’t really very familiar with Stockholm Syndrome until that case, IIRC.

If Nancy does not come home alive and unharmed, I don’t think there will be a media frenzy to obtain the rights, or at least I hope not.

Savannah is on the front lines of American media. I would hope her journalistic colleagues on “bigger TV stations” would not use her mother’s tragedy for publicity or monetary gain. To capitalize on their colleague’s pain would be dreadful and too close to home within the world of TV.

There is absolutely no way, IMO, that Savannah would sell the rights for the worst tragedy that is tormenting her and her family.

Although you may very well be right that the media will try.

Not NBC, though.

JMO

 

[Van Helsing]

But then they just left with one little paper sack. If they found anything, I'd have thought we'd see more activity, the house torn apart, and more things removed.

Shoes?

 

[Sakura2Sophia4Lucia]

I imagine with the thick brush and hilly region, if a home in prox. to NG did have a camera facing the road, getting a well detailed view will be challenging.. I spent waaaay to much time this monring scouring a 2-4 mile radius around NG's home, and only a few could've "possibly" seen something. Otherwise the brush or a hill was blocking the view.

I'm still curious if LE reached out to the delivery driver, and secured the picture taken.

The houses are set back from the road and many of the ring cameras would likely not see anything.

 

[shadowsc]

Apols if this has been raised (I’m sure it has). Surely other houses on that road have smart door bells. Have LE not yet released the car seen driving in the area at 2:30am ish, when I presume the roads would otherwise be very quiet?

The houses are pretty set back and away from the road. I can't remember if it was the sheriff or a news guy, but he was on one of the news shows and talking about how the setting makes it harder to investigate certain kinds of crimes. That they have to get creative in other ways, because door cameras don't pick up much from the road. Not the way same way that in other neighborhoods that cameras may catch something across the street, etc.

 

[slowpoke]

Ive listened to a few CSI people talk about that blood, they all-seem to think that there is no directionality to the drops, like as if the person was stopped there for a period of time and the drops just went straight down.
Ed Wallace ( from the duty ron channel) a former csi and Also trains CSI’s all over the world spoke on the spot that looks like aspirated blood, He said to test if it was aspirated , it would have amylase in it. Swab it and test for amylase.I dont know if they did that tho.
AI definition:
expirated blood (blood forced from the nose, mouth, or lungs) commonly contains salivary amylase. This is because the blood mixes with saliva while being coughed, sneezed, or forced out of the mouth.

Your last part wrenches my heart so much, because in my mind I picture NG so afraid, injured —and crying (to cough up mucus along with the blood).
Moo

 

[ttjo]

yes, like I said the news outlet is the one getting the emails,I can bet that LE,FBI has the steering wheel on this one . In fact I wouldn't be surprised id LE wasn't sitting very close to her.
If we just heard , another email was sent, and nothing follows , we would all go insane.
She did differentiate the difference between this email and the other.
Her job as a reporter in this situation has to be really hard and she can't do it without help from LE.

And I agree, she did establish that this note was shorter. The new note should have contained info about A. proof of life and B ways to communicate . Thats what the family asked for.

She sounded like the letter writers gave proof that they are the same people that wrote the first letter.
Maybe they said, we already gave you direction , you had 2 deadlines and you’ve missed one, instructions are simple, deposit the money or its game over.??? Probably didnt even offer an explanation about why they wont send proof of life And the family may have said “we understand? “
And maybe they told them where to find something that would prove its really them , like a watch? Or the contents of an amazon pkg. Totally speculating.

 

[LetsSolvIt]

https://twitter.com/x/status/2020651632166572101

I'd love to know what Brian has shared here. The link doesn't work for me, I assume because I don't have Twitter. Is it an article or a video?

 

[TheDinks]

I'd expect that a concerned person from church would first try to contact NG before contacting NG's relatives. Maybe LE has the same expectation & failed to find evidence of such a contact on NG's phone.

Oh absolutely, I'd imagine whomever missed her tried calling her phone first, got no response and then called family.

As others have posted, said friend is likely to have been in regular contact with Ms Guthrie and arranged "see you then" which would have been why it was odd she wasn't there.... then didn't answer her phone... Naturally, when you have an elderly friend with heart/mobility issues etc. you will check to see they're okay when a meeting is missed.

 

[SRWCF]

Yes 11am, that was what I meant by morning. Without an 11am call what would be the reasoning why AG arrived at 11:56am to find her mom gone?

So, my Mom used to live near me. She is also elderly and doesn't always answer her phone. I've brushed it off as maybe she was grocery shopping, or outside gardening, or at a neighbor's house, etc. I then would call several more times. About 30 to 45 mins of not being able to get ahold of her, only then would I drive to her house. AG and TC have 2 kids and lives of their own. They also likely couldn't just drop everything ASAP to rush over the moment after they got the call.

 

[SMK777]

I'd love to know what Brian has shared here. The link doesn't work for me, I assume because I don't have Twitter. Is it an article or a video?

It's a video. Haven't watched it yet myself.
Here it is:

 

[TheDinks]

I'd love to know what Brian has shared here. The link doesn't work for me, I assume because I don't have Twitter. Is it an article or a video?

He has a video on YouTube, good work, as usual

 

[SRWCF]

I'd love to know what Brian has shared here. The link doesn't work for me, I assume because I don't have Twitter. Is it an article or a video?

Go to Nitter and type in Brian's user name. You can view it there without an X account.

 

[montgomerie]

DBM