As Nancy Guthrie, 84, remains missing, a live press conference on Feb. 5 was held with Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos and FBI Special Agent in Charge Heith Janke. During the livestream with a crowd of news reporters, Nanos revealed he has officially launched a critical incident investigation team in the search and rescue of Guthrie.
Nanos said that the critical incident team will help lead the investigation and share their evidence with the FBI along the way. Janke also shared that the FBI has recruited agents from Phoenix and Quantico.
Search for Nancy Guthrie Ramps Up
Getty“We have so much in front of us still,” Nanos said. “I know that the FBI has committed a very large number of men and women to work side by side with us.”
Nanos shared that he and the wide range of investigators just want to “find a way to get to the bottom of this,” adding, “We really just want mom back.”
During the live press conference, Nanos confirmed that at 1:47 a.m. on Feb. 1, Guthrie’s doorbell camera disconnected. At 2:12 a.m., an alert for a person detected on camera came up despite no evidence of someone in the surveillance video.
1 Arrest Made in the Investigation of Nancy Guthrie
Nanos also addressed the ransom note that was received by TMZ and several other news outlets, where the sender demanded millions of dollars in the form of Bitcoin with a “deadline” of 5:00 p.m. on Feb. 5 as well as a second deadline of Monday, Feb. 9. It was noted that it will be Savannah Guthrie and her family’s choice if they want to comply to the ransom demand or not. The FBI has also offered a $50,000 reward for significant leads separate from any ransom amount.
It was then revealed that there has been one arrest made on Feb. 5 of an imposter who made a ransom demand in an effort to profit off of Guthrie’s disappearance. However, authorities are still looking into the authenticity of the ransom note sent to TMZ.
Investigators during the press conference noted that Savannah and her family’s decision to speak to the media is decided by them personally. Notably, the “TODAY” show host shared a devastating plea via Instagram on Feb. 4, telling her mom’s assailant to bring her back home and that she and her family are ready to talk.
Nanos noted that “nothing is off the table” when it comes to leads in the investigation. With no primary suspect identified, there will also be billboards put up in Arizona and neighboring states in hopes of safely bringing the beloved Nancy Guthrie back home.
The public is encouraged to call the FBI with any leads at 1-800-CALL-FBI or the Pima County Sheriff’s Department at 520-351-4900. Anonymous tips can also be submitted online at 88crime.org.
