The Sheriff in Charge of the Nancy Guthrie Case Reveals Heartbreaking News

Since the Nancy Guthrie case began, the Pima County Sheriff, Chris Nanos, has faced intense scrutiny from the public and experts alike. Now, he has shared news about the personal tragedy he has been dealing with throughout the investigation. The law enforcement official's brother died the day after Nancy was reported missing. That fact adds another heartbreaking layer to this profoundly tragic story.

Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos Reveals His Brother Died the Day After Nancy Guthrie Was Taken

Even though the FBI has been involved in Nancy Guthrie's abduction case, the Pima County Sheriff, Chris Nanos, has been the public face of the investigation from day one. That is the case because he has repeatedly spoken to the press to provide updates and dispel rumors. While his interactions with the press have been focused on trying to get to the bottom of what has happened to Savannah Guthrie's mom, he recently briefly opened up about his own loss.

During a February 2026 Daily Mail interview, he was telling the outlet about having thick skin amid the criticism he has received. In that context, Nanos shared that the day after Nancy was taken, his own brother, who was in hospice, passed away. Knowing that the man who has spent days fighting to return a mother to her family has recently lost his own sibling adds a poignant twist to this already devastating case.

Sheriff Chris Nanos Defends the Guthrie Family and His Team Amid Criticism

High-profile criminal cases like this one naturally draw heavy criticism from the interested public. That has definitely been the case for Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos and his team. Even the Daily Mail article that revealed the news about the Sheriff's brother dying featured a headline that called the Guthrie case's investigation "shambolic." That is especially incredible since the report quoted Nanos asking the media to be more responsible.

While speaking to the outlet, the Sheriff urged the online media conjecture about Tommaso Cioni to stop. "People out there can get pretty ugly and mean and nasty and not have the facts,' he said. 'I tell my journalists, you guys need to be a little more responsible… because that's just really nasty stuff."

After stressing that nobody has been ruled out in the investigation, Nanos pushed back on baseless online rumors about the Guthrie family members. "I understand the pundits are out there. They're gonna say, well, he's the last one to see her alive. We understand that stuff. But, my goodness, you're putting a mark on somebody who could be completely innocent. And more important than that, he's family."

He also discussed observers who've criticized aspects of the investigation, like how quickly the police released the crime scene at Nancy Guthrie's home. Nanos explained that he was confident that his officers had thoroughly searched the scene for evidence. "My officers were there for almost 20 hours, and they processed their scene, got it done, and brought in all the evidence,' he said. 'Then the FBI came and did their thing."

Nanos' defense of the investigation also centered on allegations that have been made about him personally. In response to reports claiming he'd blocked the FBI from gaining access to evidence, he completely disputed that. "That's just so far-fetched. Why would I do that? It makes no sense."