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

[su5ie]

Mental health professionals have spent their entire careers trying to figure out why people do what they do. And their thought processes. Most human behavior is goal directed even if does not make sense to others, it makes some sort of sense to the person doing the behavior.

Well of course the detective should not be applying his logic to criminal behavior logic.

Agree , so what was the goal ? That is what needs to be figured out imo

 

[warp3dwing]

Here’s a screenshot from a video on BE’s X account where you can see where the door to enter her house is through the garage.
View attachment 645212

Ah, perfect. I was incorrect about the door placement earlier. But I don’t see how two or so minutes to open and close the garage door is by any means suspicious. I’m not sure why people think it is.

 

[penguinface]

The OP asked for a circumstance where LE outright cleared a person(s) in an ongoing investigation. That is one, whether right or wrong. Another example of poor crime scene management IMO.

I wasn’t asking for an example where someone was cleared during an investigation, it was for someone who has not previously been either detained, arrested, formally questioned, or named as a POI or suspect. The Boulder police had said the Ramseys were their primary suspects, which is exactly what the DA apologised for.

 

[Tillicum]

Not sure if this possibility has been considered here. Did any of NG's friends go on and on about NG having a famous daughter to their adult children? "SG gave NG this" "SG took NG here" SG always does this for NG" "NG is so lucky to have SG for a daughter"

IDK how likely of a possibility but I think if a mentally unstable, adult child had to hear it all the time, it could lead to some jealous behavior.

 

[justwannahelp]

I think the Sheriff is a bit 'old school'. Doing things his own way and 'no one' is going to stand in his way. They had 4,000 leads in 24 hours after surveillance footage was released. I hope they are using AI on some of it to 'knit' things together.

From the research I’ve done, a human still goes over every single tip. AI helps by going back over the tips to see if the humans “missed something” and they sometimes use AI to sort tips into categories.

So while AI is indeed helpful with tips, it doesn’t necessarily speed things along since we are still using a human to go over every single tip. While this may take long, it actually makes me feel more comfortable. Humans are still superior. Lol.

FBI Cyber Lead: Division Leveraging AI for Tip Line

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Snipped from article linked above:

The head of the FBI’s Cyber Division said today that the bureau is making the “nation so much safer” by leveraging artificial intelligence (AI) and natural language processing technology in its tip reporting.

Cynthia Kaiser, the director of the FBI’s Cyber Division, said during GDIT EMERGE in D.C. on June 4 that the tip line will continue to employ humans, but emphasized “people miss things” that AI can catch.

“After it’s looked at by a human, after it’s flagged one way or another, we’re using natural language processing models to also go over the synopsis of the text of what that phone call or online tip then details to see did we miss something,” Kaiser said. “That AI is trained on the expertise of people who’ve been … taking in these tips for years and years and years and know what it is to flag.”

“That’s a way in which AI is making us so much safer and making the nation so much safer,” she continued, “There’s always a human in the loop with FBI when we’re doing that, but it helps us fill in the cracks.”
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AI isn’t as good with language as it is with numbers and images. That’s why robots are still not quite ready for home use. They don’t understand language/comands well enough.

 

[NeilC]

the more time goes by, I'm thinking this was a random home invasion/murder by a sole actor and not related to SG. i think that's the reason it's been so hard to crack the case despite basically unlimited resources.

My initial thoughts when this first happened was what you stated - home burglary gone wrong. Just statistically speaking, home burglary rates are 273.1 per 100,000 people and kidnappings for ransom are extremely rare to the point of not being able to be measured for adults.

 

[joe jones]

reading the full FBI statement Brian Entin posted on X is says the glove with DNA on it looks similar to the glove on the masked video perp, strange wording, but sounds promising

 

[loves2readhistory]

The gloves found approximately 2 miles from the Guthrie residence in a field near the side of the road were packaged up by PCOS and sent overnight on 2/12 and they arrived at their private lab in Florida on 2/13. The FBI received preliminary results yesterday on 2/14 and are awaiting quality control and official confirmation today before putting unknown male profile into CoDIS, the national database unique to the bureau. This process typically takes 24 hours from when the bureau receives DNA. Investigators collected approximately 16 gloves in various areas near the house. Most of them were searchers’s gloves that they discarded in various areas when they searched the vicinity. The one with the DNA profile recovered is different and appears to match the gloves of the subject in the surveillance video. The FBI has and will continue to provide assistance on whatever timeline is provided to us.

https://twitter.com/x/status/2023080846148989142

I have read that searches can often use police cadets, pull them out of the academy to give field experience. I don’t know who was doing the searching but this seems incredibly poor instruction on part of supervisors of those searching—to leave behind items that might become /require forensic investigation to clear them as evidence….
That just seems really careless and unprofessional, for LE themselves to pollute a possible crime scene…just stick it in your pocket and throw it away when you get back to the staging area…

 

[NewYork625]

If a robbery gone wrong, perhaps the backpack already contained some of Nancy's possessions and the person on the front porch was looking for cameras?

 

[buffalogal]

https://twitter.com/x/status/2023078791862800654

I'm sure they have been over that and surrounding fields with a fine tooth comb. (And S&R dogs) Yes?

 

[loves2readhistory]

reading the full FBI statement Brian Entin posted on X is says the glove with DNA on it looks similar to the glove on the masked video perp, strange wording, but sounds promising

And that there was enough DNA recovered to send it into CODIS after making sure it is not someone in that could be confirmed w/local information…
Maybe the physical construction of the glove itself (with a relative small opening that might close when not on someone’s hand preserved any DNA from exposure outside—no sun got in or dampness…

 

[SaraSmile]

I don't think this was committed by just one person. I am not sure a solitary, social misfit could have organised other people to work with him.

More like a group of (2-3) local thugs. JMO

 

[EncyclopediaBrownJr]

This case is driving me crazy. Every motive I follow to its typical conclusion goes off the rails at the end. I agree with all of your conclusions about why none of these fit, except the first one (apologies).

I just can't get my brain around kidnapping someone with the intent to murder them. Why would someone haul her off to murder her, and possibly get caught with her in the car, instead of kill her and walk away? You want someone dead, they're dead, job done.

Maybe the issue is that there are some elements to this crime that aren't public yet? Don't ask me what they might be, because I run right into a wall there, too. Like I said, it's making me crazy.

Leave no ballistic evidence behind? I read somewhere somebody said this was a grudge against Savannah. Maybe he didn’t want her to have a proper funeral. Could be to throw the investigation off.

It just makes me mad that a presumably young person could do this to an 84 year old woman. Sometimes I think man there could be a baby somewhere on this planet right now that could off me someday. Or someone not even born yet!

 

[Lebowski]

According to this, when assisting local police, the FBI still gets their own federal warrants to make sure what they do passes the 44th amendment test and meets federal court standards.

Google Search

bbm

judges from the future? the case keeps getting crazier and crazier.

 

[cherryleaf]

Since LE took NG's car, I imagine they are just making sure they are thorough in this investigation. That being said, is there anything in particular that you all think they might be looking for in NG's car? We've heard nothing about her car being involved in the crime. While LE impounding NG's care might be just LE covering all of their bases, it could also suggest that they are investigating if NG's car was involved in this crime. JMO

I think they may be looking for fingerprints, trying to pull information and data from the infotainment system, perhaps a built in gps too. Figuring out when she last drove and regular places she would go. I remember seeing her vehicle being taken out and the front bumper also “appeared” damaged. I can’t currently find a photo of that atm to verify.

They Start talking about her car around 3:50. BE also mentions later on that LE took her vehicle on day 6 of her disappearance.

 

[nycpizzaparty]

And that there was enough DNA recovered to send it into CODIS after making sure it is not someone in that could be confirmed w/local information…

But don't they have to connect it to the crime? A person's DNA on a roadside glove doesn't really mean anything unless there is something also on the glove that links to the crime scene or NG, etc. I'm not saying it's impossible it's related but I would think DNA match on evidence in NG house is more likely to help. But no mention of that DNA testing...

 

[j_in_c]

I understand your question. LE has both options. However, the time it takes to search the vast deserts, ravines, mountains in this area could take the years the sheriff referred to in his recent statements. Bodies are found in these desolate areas decades after they have gone missing.
However, if you find the perpetrator(s), you at least have a chance to find your victim. You can use their capture to negotiate jail time, death penalty etc if they lead LE to the victim, whether alive or deceased. If there is more than one perp arrested, you can play one against the other.
Searches without knowledge of the general area where the victim was dropped is like trying to find a needle in a haystack.

Thank for this sensible reply. Searches of open space without evidence or even a point last seen to start with are not feasible or helpful.

Asking folks along paths of egress from her home to keep an eye out for unusual or out of place items along the road is a good idea and hopefully was done along with LE canvassing the immediate area.

LE and FBI should not "look busy" for PR purposes. This investigation already appears to be suffering from a tremendous media over saturation where innocent folks who are being swept up (and we know innocent/unrelated people are swept up in EVERY high profile investigation where thousands of tips pour in) are being exposed in ways that I personally have not seen before. I am glad this time they covered up the tags on the RR and I hope they are doing more to vet leads without exposing innocent people to media scrutiny.

 

[Lebowski]

But don't they have to connect it to the crime? A person's DNA on a roadside glove doesn't really mean anything unless there is something also on the glove that links to the crime scene or NG, etc. I'm not saying it's impossible it's related but I would think DNA match on evidence in NG house is more likely to help. But no mention of that DNA testing...

yes, but it could give them a person to look at, and that in turn could lead them to evidence connecting them to the crime.

 

[Sakura2Sophia4Lucia]

IMO this case will likely be solved with the assistance of Walmart. When the information on the backpack came out it was an “exclusive” from Walmart, I got a bit excited.

Walmart is a risky place for criminals. How many times have we seen the Dateline’s and other crime shows? The camera over the register? And the “murder kit” coming down the conveyer belt. They get a copy of the receipt. With the date and time. A photo of the purchaser. And they follow the cameras outside and usually get a photo of the vehicle and possibly the license plate.

Walmart has one of the best retail surveillance systems out there. Their inventory system is also top notch. They can look up this gun holster and this backpack to see when and what store it was purchased from.

Then get a list of the credit card receipts. And videos of the purchasers.

I’m sure subpoenas and the leg work involved with checking out the cash purchasers will take time. But this will narrow things down.

Agree. Walmart has extensive cameras both inside and outside the store. Arabian Lover said it well - Walmart has one of the best retail surveillance systems out there and would have videos of the section of the store where these items were sold, the person at check out and their car.

While there are 17 Walmarts in Tucson, many of these are Walmart grocery stores or Walmart superstores that don't sell these specialty Walmart backpacks. So it's a small number of Walmarts in Tucson selling this kind of backpack.

If LE has determined that the suspect had specific gear that was purchased at another specific store, they could look at which Walmarts are near that other specific store and start with a subpoena for that store.

Once LE has a subpoena, they could see if there are matches with a person who they already have on their suspect list as well as gather additional names to investigate.

I'm actually hopeful that LE is investigating this possibility. Seems this is a huge clue that could help this investigation. MOO

 

[LarryLujack]

Former CIA officer and FBI special agent Tracy Walder, in a February 6 analysis, dismissed pure financial motives: "Savannah's salary is publicly known, and others earn more... I am not convinced it’s fully about money. I, in my gut, feel like this is someone that either had some kind of obsession with Savannah because of how high profile she is, and this was a way to potentially get to her. Or this is a person that has some kind of beef with Savannah because of whatever story she covered or whoever she interviewed." She emphasized stalking: "There’s no way this is a robbery gone wrong. You’re not going to bring the person with you. There’s no way this is random." Walder noted neighbors reported a suspicious van near the home days prior, hinting at reconnaissance.