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

[slowpoke]

(RSBM)
This was mentioned earlier in this thread by another poster. @chaz

Amazingly observant, both of you!

ETA:
Post 34,312. I’m having trouble linking here. Sorry.

Here is the post you are referring to.

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

 

[Katrinepa]

Just catching up on the updates of this case.

Given that we now know the perpetrator(s) seem to have specifically targeted Nancy. Do we think it’s most likely due to her being Savannah’s mother or more so that Nancy was an elderly woman living alone in an expensive home ie an easy target?

Lots of the properties in the area are large, with large homes, and many elderly, so why pick this one? Wouldn't surprise me that Nancy was targeted by someone infatuated with, or hating Savannah. Up for grabs why. Too many nutty, violent people in society sadly. Question now is, will her body ever be recovered? Is it even in one piece? MOO

 

[Chainspell]

Nancy Guthrie's neighbor saw suspicious man walking nearby 2 weeks before suspected abduction

A Tucson neighbor said she saw a suspicious man near Nancy Guthrie’s home weeks before her suspected abduction. Investigators are reviewing security footage as they refine the timeline.

www.foxnews.com

TUCSON, Ariz. — A neighbor of Nancy Guthrie said she saw a suspicious young man walking in her neighborhood about two weeks before the 84-year-old mother of "Today" co-host Savannah Guthrie is believed to have been abducted from her Tucson home.

"He didn’t have your typical walking gear on, and he had his hat pulled really far over his eyes," said AM, who told Fox News Digital she’s lived in the Catalina Foothills for nearly 30 years.

She said she saw the man walking in the neighborhood, near an intersection leading to Guthrie’s home — and hadn't encountered him before or after.

"He was kind of younger, and he just didn’t look like he was going out for a walk," she added.

 

[Katrinepa]

Morning everyone.

The FBI stated at the February 5th press conference, "Any action taken on any ransom is ultimately decided by the family."

Timestamp: 13:29

Also, anytime a reporter asked a question regarding the ransom note Nanos stepped aside and let the FBI answer those questions.

I am not an apologist for Sheriff Nanos but I do believe in fairness.

Thank you for the clarity. There is obviously much the public does not know, and I think reminders are helpful, whereas judging from gossip is a distraction.

 

[Marie A]

IMHO

This case was a highly planned out and most definitely targeted kidnapping for ransom in order to specifically extort big money from Savannah Guthrie who had the means to pay six million dollars for the return of her mother.

It was/ is a very sophisticated kidnapping for ransom in several ways.
It was without a doubt NOT a burglary or sexual crime.
It was not a vendetta against Savannah per se, she was simply targeted for her wealth
and for the fact that it was public knowledge that she was close to her mother who lived in Tucson.

Both NBC and Savannah realize (after the fact) that they contributed to the fact that Nancy was targeted. In Savannah’s case she will need to forgive herself for the sake of her own health and for those who love her and need her.

I think that ransom notes sent to TMZ and such were possible duplicates of the same note sent earlier to local law enforcement and/or to NBC for Savannah’s attention- just not disclosed as such.
After no acknowledgment of the earliest note(s), the kidnappers cast a wider net to be sure their important note wasn’t ignored - hence TMZ and local news stations.
The earliest note was legitimately attached to this kidnapping and these kidnappers meant business. No further contact, no negotiations for less than six million dollars.
This was definitely NOT a one man operation.

I will reiterate that it is my belief that this kidnapping was masterminded by people who may be local but definitely have connections south of the border - which is 90 minutes by car from Nancy’s home.
I think Nancy was well into Mexico many hours before the alarm was raised by her friends when she missed their get-together for virtual church worship.

Statistically Mexico has tens of thousands of kidnappings for extortion/ ransom yearly.
One could even say it has a kidnapping culture.

The original note was not written by AI but was analyzed as composed by a non native English speaker.
Thereby the original sharp focus on Savannah’s brother in law who was subsequently and rightfully fully cleared.

The biggest clue by far in this case is the porch videos.
Law enforcement should be commended for extracting those videos.
I don’t think there was any extra masking to hide features.
The facial hair in the video matches copious numbers of locals, copious numbers of gentlemen from south of the border and almost half of the US men’s hockey team that just won gold in the Olympics.
In other words, these aren’t unique features.

I don’t think Nancy had a working burglar alarm. Perps would have checked for that before breaking in the night of the abduction.

How is this kidnapping sophisticated?
1) legitimate ransom note is untraceable- very very advanced computer skills on behalf of perps
2) crypto account for ransom also untraceable - would have been abandoned after authorities deposited their “dusting” money into the account
3) no traceable vehicle that Nancy was abducted in to date
4) no mistakes like “knife sheath” left on scene
5) meticulous planning to assure perps are not identified

I don’t believe these sophisticated perps tossed their black gloves out their truck/van window. Nothing will come of any of the gloves.

I think the kidnappers have covered their tracks/ disposed of/ burned the kidnapping vehicle, disposed of/ burned all clothing and accessories seen in the porch video/ disposed of/ burned Nancy’s body. They have abandoned anything that could tie them via DNA to Nancy- possibly even burned down the remote ranch house where they were holding Nancy.

I think that in time, the FBI will determine which group planned this sophisticated, targeted kidnapping but there will be no evidence to prosecute anyone involved.

I think that the group involved in taking Nancy has carried out numerous successful extortions/ kidnappings for ransom in the past and that this one was the culmination of their past experiences and their brazenness in raising the bar to a much higher bounty.

I don’t think that this will be their last kidnapping or that they will necessarily lay low for any amount of time.

I think these kidnappers truly thought that they had a good chance of obtaining six million dollars from Savannah and that they are disappointed/ angry/frustrated that their well thought out plan didn’t bear fruit this time.

I think their wheels are already spinning towards other possible targets that may bear fruit.

Nonetheless, I’m still joining Savannah in praying for a miracle and my heart truly aches for all of Nancy’s loved ones.

 

[ab01]

https://twitter.com/x/status/2026657033496440919

 

[SMK777]

You have to be pretty "confident" to call a LE tip line just to share your thoughts.

And yet people have been doing exactly that, to the detriment of the investigation.

 

[JoeFromLB]

IMHO

This case was a highly planned out and most definitely targeted kidnapping for ransom in order to specifically extort big money from Savannah Guthrie who had the means to pay six million dollars for the return of her mother.

It was/ is a very sophisticated kidnapping for ransom in several ways.
It was without a doubt NOT a burglary or sexual crime.
It was not a vendetta against Savannah per se, she was simply targeted for her wealth
and for the fact that it was public knowledge that she was close to her mother who lived in Tucson.

Both NBC and Savannah realize (after the fact) that they contributed to the fact that Nancy was targeted. In Savannah’s case she will need to forgive herself for the sake of her own health and for those who love her and need her.

I think that ransom notes sent to TMZ and such were possible duplicates of the same note sent earlier to local law enforcement and/or to NBC for Savannah’s attention- just not disclosed as such.
After no acknowledgment of the earliest note(s), the kidnappers cast a wider net to be sure their important note wasn’t ignored - hence TMZ and local news stations.
The earliest note was legitimately attached to this kidnapping and these kidnappers meant business. No further contact, no negotiations for less than six million dollars.
This was definitely NOT a one man operation.

I will reiterate that it is my belief that this kidnapping was masterminded by people who may be local but definitely have connections south of the border - which is 90 minutes by car from Nancy’s home.
I think Nancy was well into Mexico many hours before the alarm was raised by her friends when she missed their get-together for virtual church worship.

Statistically Mexico has tens of thousands of kidnappings for extortion/ ransom yearly.
One could even say it has a kidnapping culture.

The original note was not written by AI but was analyzed as composed by a non native English speaker.
Thereby the original sharp focus on Savannah’s brother in law who was subsequently and rightfully fully cleared.

The biggest clue by far in this case is the porch videos.
Law enforcement should be commended for extracting those videos.
I don’t think there was any extra masking to hide features.
The facial hair in the video matches copious numbers of locals, copious numbers of gentlemen from south of the border and almost half of the US men’s hockey team that just won gold in the Olympics.
In other words, these aren’t unique features.

I don’t think Nancy had a working burglar alarm. Perps would have checked for that before breaking in the night of the abduction.

How is this kidnapping sophisticated?
1) legitimate ransom note is untraceable- very very advanced computer skills on behalf of perps
2) crypto account for ransom also untraceable - would have been abandoned after authorities deposited their “dusting” money into the account
3) no traceable vehicle that Nancy was abducted in to date
4) no mistakes like “knife sheath” left on scene
5) meticulous planning to assure perps are not identified

I don’t believe these sophisticated perps tossed their black gloves out their truck/van window. Nothing will come of any of the gloves.

I think the kidnappers have covered their tracks/ disposed of/ burned the kidnapping vehicle, disposed of/ burned all clothing and accessories seen in the porch video/ disposed of/ burned Nancy’s body. They have abandoned anything that could tie them via DNA to Nancy- possibly even burned down the remote ranch house where they were holding Nancy.

I think that in time, the FBI will determine which group planned this sophisticated, targeted kidnapping but there will be no evidence to prosecute anyone involved.

I think that the group involved in taking Nancy has carried out numerous successful extortions/ kidnappings for ransom in the past and that this one was the culmination of their past experiences and their brazenness in raising the bar to a much higher bounty.

I don’t think that this will be their last kidnapping or that they will necessarily lay low for any amount of time.

I think these kidnappers truly thought that they had a good chance of obtaining six million dollars from Savannah and that they are disappointed/ angry/frustrated that their well thought out plan didn’t bear fruit this time.

I think their wheels are already spinning towards other possible targets that may bear fruit.

Nonetheless, I’m still joining Savannah in praying for a miracle and my heart truly aches for all of Nancy’s loved ones.

As good a theory as anything I've seen on this enormous thread. Makes sense.

 

[Katrinepa]

What’s this now? Nanos said back on 2/17 that the DNA from inside the house had been analyzed and 1) didn’t match the DNA found in the glove, and 2) didn’t match any profile in CODIS. So it was already entered into CODIS.

Is there possibly some confusion about the DNA not being currently viable for entry into genealogical databases as opposed to CODIS?
View attachment 648214

Degraded DNA would be expected, as she has lived in that house for many years, with any number of visitors, workers, etc having been there and leaving DNA. CODIS is only a collection of people having death with LE, and not the general public who has not been accused of crimes.
ie; when rapists are caught and prosecuted, they have most likely committed many rapes without being caught. Same for other crimes, as some are not even reported...JMOO

 

[No it's not]

Sometimes things are not as what they appear to be. If the subject from the video aka “Lantana Man” really showed up at an unknown date prior to Saturday, January 31st, he had a very specific reason IMO to stand in front of NG’s front entry caught on the Nest cam that night!

He did not come to scout out the house, because he is a local (?) and he possibly knows NG, her routines, her house. I think he came to see whether or not the cam would record him and whether NG had subscription, or would the recording just not show the next day. How would he know? Easy. As a friend/neighbor/laborer he would just ask NG the next day whether she also had a recording of a strange man on her cam like a few other locals had! He may get even more infor out of her that way. “No, I don’t have a subscription/ did not get any notifications/don’t check the cam that often”etc. MOO

More to follow

ALL IMO

-Nin

 

[VegasGirl35]

Just catching up on the updates of this case.

Given that we now know the perpetrator(s) seem to have specifically targeted Nancy. Do we think it’s most likely due to her being Savannah’s mother or more so that Nancy was an elderly woman living alone in an expensive home ie an easy target?

I think it depends on motive. If it was truly a kidnapping for ransom, then Savannah factors in because she's the only family member with that kind of money to pay. If it was a serial killer looking for vulnerable prey, Nancy was an easy target.

 

[shonyakay]

Good article from Brian.

Heith Janke special agent in charge for the FBI stated at the February 5th press conference, "We are in communication with the family, and while we advise and recommend from a law enforcement perspective, any action taken on any ransom is ultimately decided by the family."

Timestamp: 13:40

 

[Katrinepa]

And yet people have been doing exactly that, to the detriment of the investigation.

I have a self absorbed, thoughtless neighbor who called 911 because she was upset her new chair wasn't delivered one night last week! Grr!

 

[Sadi]

We have listened to scores of talking heads on TV give opinions.. That's all they are. The DNA for now seems like it might be a blind alley. I don't know. So what do we have that we can sink our teeth into? 84 year old woman, taken from her bed, blood on her walkway, and a VIDEO. They have already said it isnt a burglary gone wrong. Look at that footage! He was well prepared with his backpack and full body camouflage. If he really was there hours or days apart, that's stalking.

Children and young women are snatched off the street every day and are sexually assault and murdered. They dont dress up like monsters. Often it is a crime of opportunity and to satisfy some sexual arousal. This kidnapper was prepared. This was targeted to NG. It's not the wrong house, wrong victim scenario. IMO

Study that video. Youngish male, covered from head to toe, bite light, phallic carrying of gun, possibly carrying gear in his backpack to subdue his victim. Length of time in the house just doesnt matter. He got in and got out with his prey. He has evaded capture or identification so far. This is a stalker who wanted to take NG to gain the attention of SG. This was a well planned and executed mission by a haunted, delusional, romantically obsessed fan who needed to gain the attention of SG. IMO, this was not a random guy who wanted to have sex with a random old lady.

Motive is the key here whatever that is,. Figure out the motive and you will find the perp. The only viable motives for me is some kind of twisted revenge or obsessed stalker and we all know where I stand. Where do you stand?
JMO

I’m not sure what to think anymore. I believe this was preplanned, but not sure of the motive. Besides Nancy being removed from her house, it doesn’t sound like a burglary gone wrong, nothing is missing, that we know about. Whoever is involved, they don’t mind seeing the pain the family is suffering. Someone knows who is responsible and they need to make the call to LE. Maybe the perp is no longer alive, due to their own actions. But then again, I think they’re still alive and love the publicity they’re receiving.

 

[vereb]

The original note was not written by AI but was analyzed as composed by a non native English speaker.
Thereby the original sharp focus on Savannah’s brother in law who was subsequently and rightfully fully cleared.

Has the note been published, or where is this "analyzed as composed by a non native English speaker" info from?

 

[ab01]

I really hope that Ortham is brought in at some point.

While DNA Labs International in Florida is an excellent traditional lab, Ortham is the gold standard in partial DNA testing and replication for use in genealogy.

If you have a partial sample there’s nobody better than Ortham imo

 

[SMK777]

I have an idiot, self absorbed neighbor who called 911 because she was upset her new chair wasn't delivered! Grr!

Ugh, yes; have heard 911 stories like that.

And it only becomes worse with a major crime and reward money.

 

[tkcrockett]

definitely has to do with Savannah because she could easily pay the ransom JMO

"definitely" is doing a lot of work...

 

[MrsEmmaPeel]

IMHO

This case was a highly planned out and most definitely targeted kidnapping for ransom in order to specifically extort big money from Savannah Guthrie who had the means to pay six million dollars for the return of her mother.

It was/ is a very sophisticated kidnapping for ransom in several ways.
It was without a doubt NOT a burglary or sexual crime.
It was not a vendetta against Savannah per se, she was simply targeted for her wealth
and for the fact that it was public knowledge that she was close to her mother who lived in Tucson.

Both NBC and Savannah realize (after the fact) that they contributed to the fact that Nancy was targeted. In Savannah’s case she will need to forgive herself for the sake of her own health and for those who love her and need her.

I think that ransom notes sent to TMZ and such were possible duplicates of the same note sent earlier to local law enforcement and/or to NBC for Savannah’s attention- just not disclosed as such.
After no acknowledgment of the earliest note(s), the kidnappers cast a wider net to be sure their important note wasn’t ignored - hence TMZ and local news stations.
The earliest note was legitimately attached to this kidnapping and these kidnappers meant business. No further contact, no negotiations for less than six million dollars.
This was definitely NOT a one man operation.

I will reiterate that it is my belief that this kidnapping was masterminded by people who may be local but definitely have connections south of the border - which is 90 minutes by car from Nancy’s home.
I think Nancy was well into Mexico many hours before the alarm was raised by her friends when she missed their get-together for virtual church worship.

Statistically Mexico has tens of thousands of kidnappings for extortion/ ransom yearly.
One could even say it has a kidnapping culture.

The original note was not written by AI but was analyzed as composed by a non native English speaker.
Thereby the original sharp focus on Savannah’s brother in law who was subsequently and rightfully fully cleared.

The biggest clue by far in this case is the porch videos.
Law enforcement should be commended for extracting those videos.
I don’t think there was any extra masking to hide features.
The facial hair in the video matches copious numbers of locals, copious numbers of gentlemen from south of the border and almost half of the US men’s hockey team that just won gold in the Olympics.
In other words, these aren’t unique features.

I don’t think Nancy had a working burglar alarm. Perps would have checked for that before breaking in the night of the abduction.

How is this kidnapping sophisticated?
1) legitimate ransom note is untraceable- very very advanced computer skills on behalf of perps
2) crypto account for ransom also untraceable - would have been abandoned after authorities deposited their “dusting” money into the account
3) no traceable vehicle that Nancy was abducted in to date
4) no mistakes like “knife sheath” left on scene
5) meticulous planning to assure perps are not identified

I don’t believe these sophisticated perps tossed their black gloves out their truck/van window. Nothing will come of any of the gloves.

I think the kidnappers have covered their tracks/ disposed of/ burned the kidnapping vehicle, disposed of/ burned all clothing and accessories seen in the porch video/ disposed of/ burned Nancy’s body. They have abandoned anything that could tie them via DNA to Nancy- possibly even burned down the remote ranch house where they were holding Nancy.

I think that in time, the FBI will determine which group planned this sophisticated, targeted kidnapping but there will be no evidence to prosecute anyone involved.

I think that the group involved in taking Nancy has carried out numerous successful extortions/ kidnappings for ransom in the past and that this one was the culmination of their past experiences and their brazenness in raising the bar to a much higher bounty.

I don’t think that this will be their last kidnapping or that they will necessarily lay low for any amount of time.

I think these kidnappers truly thought that they had a good chance of obtaining six million dollars from Savannah and that they are disappointed/ angry/frustrated that their well thought out plan didn’t bear fruit this time.

I think their wheels are already spinning towards other possible targets that may bear fruit.

Nonetheless, I’m still joining Savannah in praying for a miracle and my heart truly aches for all of Nancy’s loved ones.

I believe everything you write here makes a lot of sense and is the simplest, most plausible scenario. I might argue on a few details but idea is the same. So a question @Marie A… if everything was so professional and well executed, what went wrong? If the motive were the ransom? IYO? Thanks!

 

[No it's not]

IMHO

This case was a highly planned out and most definitely targeted kidnapping for ransom in order to specifically extort big money from Savannah Guthrie who had the means to pay six million dollars for the return of her mother.

It was/ is a very sophisticated kidnapping for ransom in several ways.
It was without a doubt NOT a burglary or sexual crime.
It was not a vendetta against Savannah per se, she was simply targeted for her wealth
and for the fact that it was public knowledge that she was close to her mother who lived in Tucson.

Both NBC and Savannah realize (after the fact) that they contributed to the fact that Nancy was targeted. In Savannah’s case she will need to forgive herself for the sake of her own health and for those who love her and need her.

I think that ransom notes sent to TMZ and such were possible duplicates of the same note sent earlier to local law enforcement and/or to NBC for Savannah’s attention- just not disclosed as such.
After no acknowledgment of the earliest note(s), the kidnappers cast a wider net to be sure their important note wasn’t ignored - hence TMZ and local news stations.
The earliest note was legitimately attached to this kidnapping and these kidnappers meant business. No further contact, no negotiations for less than six million dollars.
This was definitely NOT a one man operation.

I will reiterate that it is my belief that this kidnapping was masterminded by people who may be local but definitely have connections south of the border - which is 90 minutes by car from Nancy’s home.
I think Nancy was well into Mexico many hours before the alarm was raised by her friends when she missed their get-together for virtual church worship.

Statistically Mexico has tens of thousands of kidnappings for extortion/ ransom yearly.
One could even say it has a kidnapping culture.

The original note was not written by AI but was analyzed as composed by a non native English speaker.
Thereby the original sharp focus on Savannah’s brother in law who was subsequently and rightfully fully cleared.

The biggest clue by far in this case is the porch videos.
Law enforcement should be commended for extracting those videos.
I don’t think there was any extra masking to hide features.
The facial hair in the video matches copious numbers of locals, copious numbers of gentlemen from south of the border and almost half of the US men’s hockey team that just won gold in the Olympics.
In other words, these aren’t unique features.

I don’t think Nancy had a working burglar alarm. Perps would have checked for that before breaking in the night of the abduction.

How is this kidnapping sophisticated?
1) legitimate ransom note is untraceable- very very advanced computer skills on behalf of perps
2) crypto account for ransom also untraceable - would have been abandoned after authorities deposited their “dusting” money into the account
3) no traceable vehicle that Nancy was abducted in to date
4) no mistakes like “knife sheath” left on scene
5) meticulous planning to assure perps are not identified

I don’t believe these sophisticated perps tossed their black gloves out their truck/van window. Nothing will come of any of the gloves.

I think the kidnappers have covered their tracks/ disposed of/ burned the kidnapping vehicle, disposed of/ burned all clothing and accessories seen in the porch video/ disposed of/ burned Nancy’s body. They have abandoned anything that could tie them via DNA to Nancy- possibly even burned down the remote ranch house where they were holding Nancy.

I think that in time, the FBI will determine which group planned this sophisticated, targeted kidnapping but there will be no evidence to prosecute anyone involved.

I think that the group involved in taking Nancy has carried out numerous successful extortions/ kidnappings for ransom in the past and that this one was the culmination of their past experiences and their brazenness in raising the bar to a much higher bounty.

I don’t think that this will be their last kidnapping or that they will necessarily lay low for any amount of time.

I think these kidnappers truly thought that they had a good chance of obtaining six million dollars from Savannah and that they are disappointed/ angry/frustrated that their well thought out plan didn’t bear fruit this time.

I think their wheels are already spinning towards other possible targets that may bear fruit.

Nonetheless, I’m still joining Savannah in praying for a miracle and my heart truly aches for all of Nancy’s loved ones.

Great theory, thank you for sharing. However, if the abductors/kidnappers were that sophisticated, how do you explain using plant material to cover/handle or else the Nest cam? They would have scouted out the entire house, entry and egress points. And yet they were not professional about the entry cam? The only moot point IMO.

Cheers,
Nin