What We Know About the Suspect in Nancy Guthrie’s Disappearance

As the search for Nancy Guthrie, the 84-year-old mother of “Today” show host Savannah Guthrie, approaches its third week, federal authorities—who have described the case as a potential kidnapping—have released further information on a suspect in her disappearance.

After reviewing doorbell camera footage of Guthrie’s home in Tucson, Arizona, and conducting a forensic analysis, the Federal Bureau of Investigation on Thursday shared “new identifying” details on the suspect’s appearance, including a backpack the individual was wearing.

[time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”]

“The suspect is described as a male, approximately 5’9” – 5’10” tall, with an average build. In the video, he is wearing a black, 25-liter ‘Ozark Trail Hiker Pack’ backpack,” the FBI’s Phoenix office wrote. 

The FBI also announced that it was increasing the reward  “for information leading to the location of Nancy Guthrie and/or the arrest and conviction of anyone involved in her disappearance” to $100,000.

The previous day, authorities released new photos and videos from Guthrie’s doorbell camera, showing what appears to be a man wearing a ski mask, a backpack, black gloves, and a holstered weapon approaching the door. The man attempts to cover the camera, first with his hand and then, after turning around and grabbing a fistfull of branches from a nearby bush, with the torn-off pieces of the plant. 

The recovery of the footage marked perhaps the biggest development in the case since Guthrie was reported missing on Feb. 1. In that time, purported ransom notes have also been sent to media outlets, a man was taken in for questioning and released hours later, and both law enforcement and Guthrie’s family have appealed to the public for information. (Tips can be submitted to 1-800-CALL-FBI or tips.fbi.gov.) But weeks on, many questions remain unanswered.

Here’s what we do know so far. 

The timeline of Guthrie’s disappearance and the investigation

On Jan. 31, Guthrie left in an Uber to visit her family for dinner around 5:30 p.m., and was later dropped off at home by a family member shortly before 10:00 p.m., when her garage door was opened and then closed, according to Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos. 

Guthrie’s doorbell camera was disconnected around 1:45 a.m. on Feb. 1. The camera’s software detected movement about half an hour later, but no video is available. Then, just before 2:30 a.m., Guthrie’s pacemaker was disconnected from her phone, according to an app for the device. 

Guthrie’s family called 911 just after noon that day to report her missing after going to check on her at her home. Deputies from the Pima County Sheriff’s Department arrived at Guthrie’s home at 12:15 p.m., and investigators found blood on the front porch, which was later confirmed to be Guthrie’s.

Authorities announced the following day, Feb. 2, that they believed Guthrie was taken against her will. 

On Feb. 3, several media outlets reported they had received alleged ransom letters that demanded millions of dollars in bitcoin in exchange for Guthrie’s safe return. The veracity of the ransom notes has not been confirmed, but one included two deadlines of 5:00 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 5 and the following Monday, Feb. 9.

In the note, according to outlets that received it, including CNN affiliate KGUN, Guthrie’s purported abductor demanded $6 million and threatened her life if the first deadline was not met.

The Pima County Sheriff’s Department announced a $50,000 reward for information leading to Guthrie’s discovery on Feb. 5. The FBI is working jointly with the sheriff’s department and has brought in agents from the agency’s Phoenix office to analyze social media, bank information, and other resources, Heith Janke, the agent leading the FBI’s Phoenix division, said that day. 

The FBI released the first images of Guthrie’s suspected abductor from the doorbell camera five days later, on Feb. 10, which FBI Director Kash Patel described in an X post as showing “an armed individual appearing to have tampered with the camera at Nancy Guthrie’s front door the morning of her disappearance.”

Later that day, the Pima County Sheriff’s office announced that it had detained a “subject” during a traffic stop in Rio Rico, Arizona, about 60 miles south of Tucson, who was being questioned in connection to Guthrie’s disappearance. The man was released the following morning. 

Patel told Fox News’ Sean Hannity Tuesday night that his agency was investigating more than one “person of interest” in the case.

Guthrie’s children issue pleas for her return 

Savannah Guthrie, along with her siblings Annie and Camron, released an emotional video on Feb. 4, directly addressing their mother’s alleged abductor. “We need to know without a doubt that she’s alive and that you have her,” Guthrie said. “We want to hear from you and we are ready to listen.” 

Camron Guthrie posted a video on Feb. 5, around the time of the first purported ransom note’s deadline, asking on behalf of his family for a way to communicate with their mother’s possible kidnapper. 

“Whoever is out there holding our mother, we want to hear from you. We haven’t heard anything directly,” he said in the video. “We need you to reach out and we need a way to communicate with you so we move forward.”

On Feb. 7, a week after Guthrie was reported missing, her children released another video addressed to their mother’s possible abductor in which they offered to pay for her release. Two days later, Savannah Guthrie posted a video that asked the public for help finding her mother. At 5:00 p.m. that day, the second deadline in the alleged ransom note passed.

“We are at an hour of desperation, and we need your help,” Savannah Guthrie said. 

Savannah Guthrie on Thursday shared a tribute to her mother on her Instagram account with the caption: “our lovely mom. we will never give up on her. thank you for your prayers and hope.”

The video includes footage of Nancy Guthrie with her daughters as children and a black and white photo of her and her three children. 

Unknowns remain

The FBI has received over 13,000 tips to a command post that is monitored 24/7 since Guthrie was reported missing on Feb. 1, the bureau’s Phoenix office said Thursday.

But Guthrie remains missing. And a number of key details regarding the case are still unknown, or have not been shared with the public.

These include the possible method used to break into Guthrie’s home; the location of Guthrie’s doorbell camera, which was removed, according to authorities; and whether the ransom notes were in fact sent by Guthrie’s alleged abductor.