Nancy Guthrie Kidnapping Investigators ‘Working to Determine Credibility’ of New Ransom Note

Pima County Sheriff’s Department officials are investigating a new ransom note in the Nancy Guthrie disappearance case, according to a spokesperson for the agency. The PCSD/FBI Guthrie task force was informed about the alleged missive, and investigators are seeking to assess its credibility, according to the statement. The investigators' comments came after YouTube true-crime content creator Jonathan Lee Riche, also known as JLR Investigates, claimed on X (formerly Twitter) that a "friend of Nancy Guthrie" had contacted authorities regarding a bitcoin demand.

Later in the day, Riche updated his X post while livestreaming, stating he was speaking with "Lauren," a friend of Nancy Guthrie, who received an extortion bitcoin demand claiming her mother was alive in Mexico. It is worth noting that Riche identifies himself as an "investigative reporter" on social media but is not credentialed with any professional outlet.

Nancy Guthrie, mother of "Today" show anchor Savannah Guthrie, was last seen on the evening of January 31 when family took her to her Tucson, Arizona home. By February 1, she was reported missing after failing to attend a virtual church service. Guthrie's security camera, which had been disabled, later captured images of a man in a ski mask, jacket, gloves, and backpack near her property.

The FBI Phoenix department described the suspect as a male between 5'9" and 5'10" tall, with an average build. Savannah Guthrie and her siblings have made several public appeals for their mother's return, with Savannah making an emotional appeal on Instagram in July, urging her would-be captor to "do the right thing now" and help find their mother.

Despite multiple searches, analyzed DNA evidence, and various ransom notes, no arrests or suspect identifications have been made in connection with the case. One ransom note specifically claimed that Nancy Guthrie "perished shortly after she was taken" and was "buried in nature now." The search for her presumed remains continues.