The apparent kidnapping of Nancy Guthrie, the 84-year-old mother of NBC Today co-anchor Savannah Guthrie, entered its seventh day Saturday (Feb. 7) with major news — including the seizure of a vehicle from her home, a new probe into possible ransom reports and President Donald Trump suggesting that investigators may be getting closer to answers.
Authorities believe Nancy Guthrie was taken against her will from her home in Arizona sometime between Saturday night (Jan. 31) and early Sunday (Feb. 1). DNA tests confirmed the blood found on her front porch was hers, while her home security system was disabled and her pacemaker disconnected.
Update 1: Police seized the SUV from Guthrie’s home
Law enforcement officers seized a blue Subaru SUV from the garage of Guthrie’s Catalina Foothills home north of Tucson on Friday after receiving a tip from a neighbor.
A tow truck removed the SUV — believed to belong to Guthrie — and escorted it to an impound lot near the Pima County Sheriff’s Office, Fox News reported.
Update 2: FBI agents search roof, remove wiring device
FBI agents searched the roof of Guthrie’s home before removing what was believed to be wired camera equipment, according to Fox News.
Neighbor Laura Gargano said she alerted police after noticing the roof looked unusually clean compared to nearby homes.
Update 3: Second report sent to news outlet under investigation
Authorities confirmed they are looking into a second report that may be connected to the case, which was sent to Arizona’s KOLD 13 News at 11:45 a.m. local time Friday.
“The FBI and the Pima County Sheriff’s Department are aware of the new report regarding Nancy Guthrie,” officials said in a joint statement. “Investigators are actively verifying the authenticity of the information contained in the report.”
Update 4: Trump hints at ‘strong’ clues
President Donald Trump indicated Friday (Feb. 6) that investigators may be close to identifying what happened to Guthrie.
“I think we’re doing very well,” Trump said aboard Air Force One. “We have some leads that I think are very strong, and I think we might have some answers fairly soon.”
Pressed on whether authorities had identified a suspect, Trump said: “Yes. It could be definitive,” adding, “A lot has happened in the last few hours.”
Update 5: Man accused of fake ransom texts to appear in court
Prosecutors criticized in court a Los Angeles man accused of trying to defraud the Guthrie family with false ransom notes.
Derrick Callella, 42, was described as “an opportunist who learned about a family with terrible trauma and saw it as an opportunity for personal gain”.
Callella allegedly sent a fake ransom note demanding bitcoins to Guthrie’s daughter Annie and son-in-law Tommaso Cioni. He pleaded no contest and was released on $20,000 bail.
Federal authorities stressed that his alleged messages were unrelated to earlier ransom demands sent to media outlets demanding millions of dollars for Guthrie’s return.
Update 6: The sheriff is frustrated with the missing bell recording
Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos said investigators were frustrated after finding Guthrie’s doorbell camera could not provide usable footage.
The camera was disconnected early Sunday, and system data showed movement shortly after — but Guthrie did not have an active subscription.