A Southern California man has admitted in federal court to sending fraudulent ransom messages to the family of a missing elderly woman whose disappearance has gripped the nation — the mother of “Today” show co-host Savannah Guthrie.
Derrick Callella, 42, entered guilty pleas Thursday to two counts of harassment by telecommunications device in U.S. District Court in Tucson. The charges represent the only criminal conviction so far connected to the disappearance of 84-year-old Nancy Guthrie, who vanished from her Tucson, Arizona home five months ago.
Each count carries a maximum sentence of two years in prison and a $250,000 fine. However, under the terms of Callella’s plea agreement with federal prosecutors, the Hawthorne, California resident is expected to receive five years of probation rather than prison time, according to a spokesperson for the U.S. Attorney’s Office. His formal sentencing has been scheduled for September 10.
Despite the guilty plea, the question of what happened to Nancy Guthrie remains unanswered. The underlying kidnapping investigation continues without resolution.
Nancy Guthrie, described as being in fragile health with limited mobility, was last seen at her home on January 31. A friend alerted family members the following day after she failed to appear at church as planned. When relatives went to check on her, they found the home empty.
Investigators noted that Guthrie had left behind critical personal belongings, including her wallet, cellphone, hearing aid, and medication. DNA testing later confirmed that blood discovered on her front porch belonged to her.
Callella was taken into custody on February 5 — just four days after Guthrie was reported missing. Court records and FBI statements revealed that local media had already received a ransom note on February 2 demanding bitcoin payment and laying out deadlines.
In his guilty plea, Callella acknowledged that on February 4 he called and texted Guthrie’s family asking about a bitcoin transfer. According to the U.S. Attorney’s statement, “he acknowledged that he knew an earlier ransom demand had been made.”
The statement went on to say that “Callella also admitted that his actions were meant to harass the family by seeking information about the investigation into the missing person’s disappearance.”
The guilty plea came one day after the FBI’s Phoenix field office posted on X that investigators had received “several” ransom notes during the course of the investigation. Some were characterized as “extortion attempts without legitimacy,” while others are still being treated as potentially authentic. The FBI has continued to classify Nancy Guthrie’s disappearance as a kidnapping-for-ransom case.
Last week, celebrity news outlet TMZ.com reported receiving an email from an individual claiming to know who abducted Guthrie and claiming to possess video of the “main guy” involved, as well as footage of Guthrie on the day she allegedly died.
An FBI official, who spoke to Reuters anonymously due to the ongoing nature of the investigation, said Tuesday that the latest TMZ correspondence and two ransom notes that surfaced in February have all been determined by investigators to lack credibility.
