Authorities have descended on Nancy Guthrie’s home again after officials said they are ‘aware of a new message’ sent to a local news station amid the ongoing search.
The Pima County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement to X that the FBI was investigating the new message ‘regarding Nancy Guthrie’, but offered no details over the contents of the message.
Soon after the message was acknowledged, News Nation journalist Brian Entin shared footage to X showing investigators had returned to Nancy’s home, saying cops closed down the road and removed media ‘for investigative purposes.’
The message was reportedly sent to local Tucson-area news outlet KOLD. The outlet previously reported that it was sent a ‘ransom letter’ on Tuesday, as was TMZ. Authorities have not verified the legitimacy of the letters.
The statement added: ‘While this is one new piece of information, the FBI and the Pima County Sheriff’s Department are still asking anyone with tips to contact the FBI at 1-800-CALL-FBI.’
Authorities are offering a $50,000 reward for information leading to the 84-year-old’s return or to the arrest of anyone involved in her disappearance.
Nancy was reported missing Sunday morning, and investigators said evidence from her home in Tucson, Arizona indicated she had been abducted in the night.
The message was sent to the station via email, and Briana Whitney, a reporter at KOLD sister-outlet AZFamily, said in a video to X that it was received at 11:45am local time Friday.
Whitney said the outlet immediately sent the note to the sheriff’s department and the FBI, and said it was not sharing any details of the letter’s contents ‘out of respect for the family.’
Authorities say they are ‘aware’ of a new message in the ongoing search for Nancy Guthrie
The reporter stressed that KOLD and authorities have not yet verified the legitimacy of the note, which claims to have been sent by those who abducted Nancy.
It follows the arrest of California resident Derrick Callella on Thursday, after he was allegedly found to have texted Nancy’s daughter Annie and son-in-law Tommaso Cioni in a hoax ransom plot.
Callella allegedly admitted to sending the messages to capitalize on confusion surrounding Nancy’s abduction and potential ransom demands, and told investigators he was ‘just trying to see if the family would respond.’
The messages Callella sent to the Guthrie family are believed to be separate to those sent to TMZ and KOLD this week – one of which reportedly set a 5pm deadline on Thursday for millions in Bitcoin to be paid ‘or else.’
TMZ reported that a secondary, ‘more serious’ deadline was also set for Monday.
With the search for Nancy now stretching past five days, investigators admitted at a Thursday press conference that they had no suspects or persons of interest in the case.
Evidence from Nancy’s home included the apparent removal of her doorbell camera and blood spatters from her door to her driveway – which officials revealed at the press conference were confirmed to be Nancy’s blood.
With an absence of forensic evidence pointing to a suspect, on Friday retired FBI investigator James Gagliano said the ransom notes may be a break in the case.
Officials say Nancy, 84, is frail and has poor mobility, and suffers from a heart condition that requires her to take medication daily
Officials previously said they have no reason to believe Nancy may have been targeted because of her daughter, but have also not ruled out any inquiries. Savannah Guthrie earns a reported $8 million salary at NBC, and has a net worth estimated at around $40 million
Pictured: An aerial view of Nancy Guthrie’s house, where she was abducted from
The former FBI agent said ransom demands of Bitcoin funds is the ‘most compelling piece of evidence thus far.’
‘Kidnappings happen for one of two reasons: it’s either for profit or it’s for revenge,’ Gagliano, a crisis negotiation expert, told Fox & Friends Friday morning.
He highlighted how for decades high-profile individuals have been the targets of kidnappings, including Frank Sinatra Jr and newspaper heiress Patty Hearst.
Guthrie’s abduction, however, is ‘baffling and beguiling’ because it ‘does not meet muster with any of the traditional type of kidnappings’, Gagliano explained.
‘We still don’t know if this was a targeted attack, if this was a targeted abduction,’ he continued, before addressing ‘very strange’ way the alleged captors contacted the Guthrie family.
Gagliano added that it is unusual for an abductor to provide a ransom note to the media instead of delivering it directly to the victim’s family.
Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos revealed at a press conference on Thursday that Nancy Guthrie’s doorbell camera disconnected in the dead of night around the time she disappeared
