Nancy Guthrie Case: California Man Sentenced Over Fake Ransom Note

Derrick Callella, a 42-year-old man from Hawthorne, California, was sentenced on Monday for pleading guilty to writing a fake ransom note during the search for Nancy Guthrie. According to court records, Callella received two concurrent five-year probation terms and was ordered to pay $200 in special assessment. He must report to the probation office within 72 hours of his sentencing.

This follows his guilty plea to two counts of harassment using a telecommunication device. At the time of his sentencing, Judge John C. Hinderaker was planning to give a 10-year probation sentence, which included Callella attending a residential addiction treatment facility. Prosecutors stated that Callella admitted to making calls and sending text messages to Nancy Guthrie's family members on February 4, asking about a bitcoin transfer.

He also acknowledged that his actions were intended to harass the family by seeking information about the investigation into her disappearance. Nancy Guthrie was last seen on January 31 when her family dropped her off at her Tucson, Arizona home, but she was reported missing by late-midday on February 1. Authorities believe she may have been taken against her will, and security camera footage showed a man in a ski mask, jacket, gloves, and backpack near her property.

Her family has made numerous public pleas for her return, with Savannah Guthrie, Nancy's daughter and co-anchor of "Today," pleading directly to her mother's kidnapper in July. Despite multiple searches, no one has been arrested or named as a suspect in her disappearance.