TUCSON, Ariz. — A ransom note tied to the disappearance of Nancy Guthrie, the mother of ‘Today’ show host Savannah Guthrie, reportedly indicates that the 84-year-old woman has died, according to CNN and other news organizations citing law enforcement sources.
In the days following Nancy Guthrie’s disappearance in early February from her home just outside Tucson, several media outlets reported receiving ransom notes connected to the case.
On Monday, CNN reported that the contents of one of those notes revealed Nancy Guthrie was no longer alive — and that those responsible for taking her said her death was unintentional, occurring shortly after she was abducted. CNN indicated it had knowledge of one note’s contents, and that a Tucson television station had received two separate notes.
Both CNN and that station chose to withhold the contents of the notes from public disclosure, so that any future communications from the kidnapper or kidnappers could be verified as authentic, CNN reported.
The Pima County Sheriff’s Department declined to speak to the note’s contents. The FBI did not respond when asked for comment. The Guthrie family also made no public statements or social media posts regarding the notes on Monday.
Investigators believe Nancy Guthrie was kidnapped or taken against her will after blood was discovered near the entrance to her home in the foothills outside Tucson. The FBI subsequently released surveillance footage showing a masked individual on the porch of her home on the night she vanished.
In the weeks that followed her disappearance, volunteers and search teams combed the surrounding desert landscape — an area dotted with cacti, shrubs, and large boulders. A volunteer organization recently carried out a search for her remains near the Arizona-Mexico border, but reported no findings.
