Savannah Guthrie’s Mom’s Disappearance Prompts ‘Very Skeptical’ Response From Ex-FBI Official

It’s been over a week since Savannah Guthrie’s 84-year-old mother, Nancy, disappeared in the early morning hours of February 1 from her Tucson, Arizona home. And now, experts are weighing in.

Former FBI Assistant Director Chris Swecker appeared on Fox News’ The Big Weekend Show on February 8 to question the validity of the kidnapping claims.

“I’m very skeptical of this,” he admitted. “Is this really a kidnapping? Does somebody really have her, and is she really alive?”

Swecker seemed to take issue with the Guthrie family’s latest Instagram video, where they agreed to pay a ransom in exchange for Nancy to be returned safely.

“We received your message, and we understand. 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,” the Today show anchor said into the camera with her siblings, Annie and Cameron, beside her.

There has been no proof of life since her disappearance despite several messages to various media outlets locally and nationally. KGUN reporter JJ McKinney shared in a now-deleted tweet that “multiple ransom notes have been sent out to the media, including one that was sent to us. In the letter, the potential kidnappers demanded that the Guthries pay them $6 million before this Monday.”

That’s also where Swecker takes issue with the validity of the stories that Nancy and her kidnappers are out there. “Remember now, it was one million not too long ago. All of a sudden, it’s six million,” he added on the Fox News show. “I really think there’s a third party here that’s just playing with them, opportunists who think they can exploit this situation.”

Investigators have not singled out a suspect in the case, but they did an additional search of Annie and husband, Tommaso Ciono’s house on February 7. They spent over two and a half hours there, per People, and exited with a white suitcase and a brown bag.

“All that white case is — is evidence processing tools. The brown bag is for evidence,” Tracy Walder, a former CIA and FBI special agent, told the media outlet. “The back and forth is, of course, odd, and we don’t see that a lot.”

Pima County Sheriff’s Department gave a status update on the case on February 8, via X.

“The Nancy Guthrie investigation is ongoing,” they wrote. “Follow-up continues at multiple locations. No suspects, persons of interest, or vehicles have been identified. No scheduled press briefings. If any significant developments occur in the case, a press conference will be called.”

Anyone with any information about Nancy Guthrie’s case should call 1-800-CALL-FBI or visit https://tips.fbi.gov/home.

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