Nearly eight months into the search for Nancy Guthrie, police said a new ransom note may have just emerged.
Nancy Guthrie, 84, the mother of Today Show host Savannah Guthrie, was forcibly abducted from her Tucson-area home on February 1. The case drew national attention and headlines for months.
Early into Guthrie’s disappearance, two chilling ransom notes were sent to the Guthrie family that were released in full by police in July. One demanded a $4 million ransom and a second claimed the 84-year-old had died before offering an apology.
Now, it appears that there may also be a third ransom note.
Late on Monday evening, the Pima County Sheriff’s Department released a statement that said: ‘The PCSD/FBI Guthrie Task Force was recently made aware of a new possible ransom note related to the Nancy Guthrie investigation.
‘Investigators are also aware of social media comments regarding the note and are looking further into the information to determine its credibility.’
The Pima County Sheriff’s Department has been investigating the abduction with the help of the FBI.
Police did not say what the contents of the ransom note are, and the statement does not confirm whether it is legitimate.
Nancy Guthrie, 84, the mother of Today Show host Savannah Guthrie, was forcibly abducted from her Tucson-area home on February 1
Two ransom notes were released by police in July, but it appears that a third note may have just emerged. Pima County Sheriff’s deputies are pictured at Guthrie’s home after she disappeared
The Pima County Sheriff’s Department released this statement late on Monday evening
A spokesperson for the Pima County Sheriff’s Department told 13 News that ‘there is some skepticism’ regarding the validity of the note.
One of the previous ransom notes released in July was determined to potentially be authentic because it contained specific details about Guthrie’s home – a broken floodlight in the backyard and a white smartwatch found on her bedroom floor.
The other note did not contain specific details but was written in a similar tone to the first, suggesting it may have been penned by the same person.
Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos said in July that investigators released the notes in the hope that someone would recognize the writer’s distinctive wording, expressions or style.
The FBI previously released surveillance videos of a masked man who authorities said appeared to tamper with a camera on Guthrie’s front porch and block it with a plant. They described the person as a male about 5 feet, 9 inches tall.
Authorities said they are seeking information on anyone who was behaving differently, changed their physical appearance, suddenly left the Tucson area, or had a noticeable or unexplained interest or disinterest in the case.
‘We’re still here. We are not going away,’ Sheriff Nanos said two months ago. ‘We’ve got a lot of work ahead of us.’
Meanwhile, it remains unclear whether the 84-year-old may still be alive, despite one of the previous ransom notes claiming she died.
The FBI has previously released surveillance videos of a masked man who authorities said appeared to tamper with a camera on Nancy’s front porch and block it with a plant
It is unclear whether Guthrie may still be alive, although a previously released ransom note claimed that she died
If the new ransom note is determined to be legitimate, it may be evidence that the elderly woman is alive.
Prior to the revelation of the potential new ransom note, one of the most recent updates in the investigation came last month, when officers were seen scouring through the brush outside of Guthrie’s home.
They may have been looking for new clues after heavy rains in the area altered the landscape, potentially exposing or moving evidence that investigators had not previously noted, Bob Krygier, a retired Pima County Sheriff’s Department lieutenant, suggested to Fox News at the time.
However, it is also possible that authorities decided just to return to the area to take a fresh look at the crime scene after six months with no leads, the former lieutenant said, noting he was ‘certain that they’ve searched those areas already.’
Alternatively, new leads in the case may have led investigators to search the brush, looking for something specific, Krygier suggested.
It is unclear whether that search led to any new evidence or breaks in the case.
The Guthrie family has offered a reward of up to $1 million for information leading to Nancy’s recovery.
The family has yet to publicly address reports of the potential new ransom note.
