Person detained in Nancy Guthrie disappearance released in Arizona

A man briefly detained for questioning in Rio Rico, Arizona, on Tuesday evening in connection with the disappearance of Nancy Guthrie has been released, authorities said.

The Pima County Sheriff’s Department said deputies detained a man during a traffic stop south of Tucson near the U.S.-Mexico border, hours after the FBI released surveillance images of a masked man wearing what appeared to be a gun holster outside Guthrie’s front door the night he disappeared.

The department and the FBI also conducted a court-authorized search of a home in Rio Rico, a community of about 20,000 residents about an hour south of Tucson and about 15 miles north of the U.S.-Mexico border. The search is expected to last several hours, officials said Tuesday night. By Wednesday morning, investigators had left the residence, the crime scene had been cleared and police tape had been removed.

A man in the house identified himself to Fox News as Carlos Palazuelos. He said he was the person who was pulled over during a traffic stop and detained for questioning, but was later released and returned home.

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Palazuelos told Fox News that he was delivering packages in Tucson and had nothing to do with Guthrie’s disappearance. He said investigators questioned him about his whereabouts and took his phone before eventually releasing him.

Palazuelos said it was “possible” Guthrie may have delivered a package to his home.

He said law enforcement showed one of his father-in-laws a photo of a masked person seen on security camera footage at Guthrie’s property, and that it “supposedly looked like my eyes.”

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“That’s it. That’s all I know,” Palazuelos said.

On Tuesday, the FBI released short surveillance clips showing a masked person wearing a backpack and what appeared to be a gun holster outside Guthrie’s home the night he disappeared. At one point, the person turns his head away from the doorbell camera, holds a flashlight in his mouth, and appears to attempt to cover the lens and what appears to be a piece of a plant pulled from the garden with his gloved hand.

This footage released by the FBI shows a gunman tampering with the camera on Nancy Guthrie’s front door the morning she disappeared on Sunday, February 1, 2026, in Tuscon, Arizona. (provided by the FBI)

Investigators have said for more than a week that they believed Guthrie was abducted against her will. She was last seen at her home on January 31 and was reported missing the next day. Authorities said DNA testing determined that the blood found on his porch belonged to him.

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

Guthrie, 84, is the mother of “Today” host Savannah Guthrie. His disappearance on February 1 attracted national attention. Savannah Guthrie and her two siblings released multiple video statements pleading for their mother’s return, stating they were willing to pay a ransom and demanding proof that she was alive.

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Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos said Nancy Guthrie was mentally healthy but had limited mobility and was taking a variety of medications, raising concerns about her health if she did not have access to those medications.

The FBI began running digital billboards in several major cities seeking tips, and authorities urged anyone with information to contact investigators.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.