Nancy Guthrie kidnapping case enters third week with frustration, fear, new clues
As the investigation into Nancy Guthrie’s kidnapping enters its third week, President Trump threatened her kidnappers and her daughter, Savannah Guthrie, urged her mother’s kidnappers to “do the right thing” as authorities await crucial DNA evidence. But with no trace of the 84-year-old, concerns are growing about his health and questions are rising about how long the investigation will take.
On Sunday, the FBI said DNA was found on a glove found a few miles from Guthrie’s home and that the glove matched one worn by a masked person seen outside the home.
This could be a significant breakthrough in an investigation beset by false starts and pauses. No suspects have been named and local authorities have come under scrutiny for lack of progress or progress and some tactical decisions.
Savannah Guthrie posted a statement on Instagram Sunday pleading with her kidnappers.
“And I wanted to tell anyone who has it or knows where it is that it’s never too late, you’re not lost or alone, and it’s never too late to do the right thing,” he said. “We are here and we believe and we believe in the essential goodness of every human being and it is never too late.”
Nancy Guthrie was abducted from her home in Tucson on February 1. The kidnapping drama has captivated the country, but relatively few clues have emerged so far.
Investigators got the first major breakthrough in the case Tuesday with the release of footage showing an armed man wearing a ski mask, gloves and a backpack. The man was seen approaching the front door of Guthrie’s home and tampering with his Nest camera at 1:47 a.m. the night he was abducted.
On Tuesday, authorities detained a man in connection with the investigation at a traffic stop in Rio Rico, a semi-rural community about 12 miles north of the U.S.-Mexico border. Deputies and FBI forensic experts and agents searched his family’s home throughout the night but were unable to locate Guthrie. The man was released hours later and denied any involvement in her disappearance. The Times is not naming him because he has not been arrested or charged with a crime.
Authorities executed a search warrant Friday night at a Tucson home in connection with the disappearance of Nancy Guthrie but did not make an arrest.
President Trump said on Monday: New York Post He said the kidnappers would face “very, very severe – the most severe” punishment. Asked if he was referring to the death penalty, the president said, “Most likely, yes, that’s true.”
Nancy Guthrie was discovered missing on February 1 after she failed to show up at a friend’s house to watch a church service. He was taken from his home without heart medication, and it’s unclear how long he could have survived without it.
A day after Guthrie’s disappearance, news outlets obtained the same ransom notes that investigators considered legitimate.
Sources told The Times that authorities have no evidence that Guthrie was the person who wrote the ransom notes. But they also said the Feb. 2 note seemed credible because it contained nonpublic details about a specific piece of damaged property and the placement of an accessory in the home.
