Walmart gun holster may provide break in identifying Nancy Guthrie abductors

TUCSON, Ariz. — A holster seen in surveillance video captured on the front steps of missing “TODAY” co-anchor Savannah Guthrie’s mother could provide important clues to law enforcement, experts said Friday.

The holster is cheap, easily distinguishable and available only in a limited number of retail stores, according to an active-duty Miami-area police officer who shared his analysis with Fox News Digital in the hope that it could help investigators find the person responsible for his kidnapping. Nancy Guthrie.

FBI Last week, it worked with Google on the groundbreaking recovery of Guthrie’s Nest doorbell camera video. The whereabouts of the device were not publicly disclosed, nor was there a subscription to store the device in the cloud. However, investigators were able to recover video showing a masked and gloved man on Guthrie’s porch; where law enforcement later found drops of his blood.

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It shows a man described as of average build and height, covered from head to toe and wearing a backpack. It also has a cover that looks oddly worn.

The officer, who wished to remain anonymous, told Fox News Digital that the light-colored appearance of the holster was misleading because it appeared on the infrared recording. He said the main panel consists of a different material than the pipes. But the shape and other details are in line with the Strategy-brand hip holster, which sells for about $10 at some Walmart stores.

As of Saturday afternoon, the cover was listed in stock at five Tucson-area Walmart stores: 1260 E. Tucson Marketplace Blvd., 7150 E. Speedway Blvd., 7635 N. La Cholla Blvd., 1650 W. Valencia Rd., according to the retailer’s website. and 8280 N. Cortaro Rd.

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The surveillance image at left shows an unknown suspect in the Nancy Guthrie investigation with a holstered firearm. At right is a photo of the Strategy Large Frame Pistol Hip Holster, which was determined by a police expert to be the same holster worn by the suspect in surveillance footage. (FBI Arizona and Fox News Digital)

According to details on Walmart’s website, the water-resistant holster is designed to hold a handgun with a barrel between 4 and 6.5 inches. The product description states that the holster is designed for right-handed use. The officer said the gun in the Nest video appeared to be a Walther semi-automatic or something similar, an unusual and distinctive match.

It has a distinctive shape and grip tape and is not considered popular among firearms enthusiasts. As a result, the officer doesn’t expect investigators to find many purchases.

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Another identifiable item worn by the masked suspect in Nest doorbell camera video released by the FBI this week is also available only at Walmart stores: an Ozark Trail backpack.

An Ozark Trails backpack goes on sale at a Walmart store in Tucson, Arizona, on Friday, February 13, 2026. (Derek Shook for Fox News Digital)

While the backpack is a common, popular and widely available item, the cover was in stock at only two of more than a dozen stores in the Tucson area as of Friday, according to Walmart’s online shopping site.

“I think it’s more indicative of someone grabbing their stuff and improvising,” said retired police sergeant and instructor Betsy Brantner Smith. “But I don’t think this guy is a ‘professional’ either. I think his demeanor suggests he’s involved in kidnapping, breaking and entering, whatever it may be.”

Investigators can cross-reference the purchase of these two items to find the suspect or narrow down the pool of persons of interest.

“Probably fewer people bought the holster than bought the backpack,” Brantner Smith told Fox News Digital.

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An FBI billboard in Albuquerque, NM raises awareness about the search for missing Nancy Guthrie. (KRQE)

Neither the Pima County Sheriff’s Department nor the FBI immediately responded to emails about the holster.

Guthrie, 84, was forcibly removed from his north Tucson home in the early morning hours of Feb. 1, according to the Pima County Sheriff’s Department.

A reward of $100,000 will be offered for information that solves the case. Call 1-800-CALL-FBI.