Additional Coverage:
- Ex-FBI Special Agent tells CNN Nancy Guthrie disappearance may not be ‘kidnapping’ after all (irishstar.com)
New Twist in Savannah Guthrie’s Mother’s Disappearance: Ex-FBI Agent Doubts Kidnapping Theory
Tucson, AZ – The perplexing disappearance of Nancy Guthrie, mother of “Today Show” host Savannah Guthrie, has taken a new turn as the search enters its ninth day. While authorities have been operating under the assumption of a kidnapping, a former FBI special agent is now casting doubt on that theory, suggesting a different scenario may be at play for the 84-year-old.
Nancy Guthrie was reported missing on Sunday, February 1st, after she failed to attend church services. She was last seen the previous evening when her son-in-law dropped her off at her Tucson, Arizona residence following dinner at her daughter Annie’s home.
In the days since, two unusual demands have been delivered to local news outlets. Savannah Guthrie, 54, along with her siblings Camron and Annie, publicly indicated in a social media video their willingness to pay a ransom for their mother’s safe return. However, there have been no further updates regarding any such payment.
In a recent interview with CNN’s Pamela Brown, former FBI supervisory special agent James Gagliano offered a fresh perspective on the case, while still acknowledging its inherent strangeness. Gagliano stated that Nancy Guthrie’s disappearance doesn’t align with a typical abduction case.
Brown highlighted the family’s previous mention of Nancy requiring medications and the fact that she has now been without them for over a week. Gagliano then shared his primary reservation about the kidnapping theory, emphasizing the extreme rarity of abductions involving individuals in their eighties.
“So we have an octogenarian, a woman who’s 84 years old. She obviously has heart conditions, needs medications,” Gagliano remarked.
“And Pam, I’ll give you a stat here. Do you know the percentage of kidnappings that occur of 80-year-olds?
It’s like infinitesimal. It’s less than one half of one percent.
That’s why this case, again, is so baffling and confounding.”
When directly asked by Brown if he was convinced it was a kidnapping, Gagliano delivered a resounding “No.” He then elaborated on alternative possibilities, specifically mentioning “virtual kidnappings.”
“There are numbers of ways to conduct kidnappings, right? There’s a new craze of this, and again, we saw this south of the border when I was stationed there called virtual kidnappings, where they do everything they can to make you believe that they have your loved one in their, quote, unquote ‘possession’ when they don’t,” he explained.
Gagliano further noted the sophisticated tactics employed in such schemes, including the rapid use of artificial intelligence to create confusion and panic, pressuring families to comply with demands. He also pointed out the significant time gap between Nancy Guthrie’s drop-off at home and the family’s notification of law enforcement, a 14-hour window, which he believes doesn’t necessarily indicate anything unusual in the initial stages of an investigation.
According to Gagliano, the resolution of this case will likely hinge on two critical investigative avenues. The first is traditional “flat footwork,” involving door-to-door inquiries and interviews. However, he stressed that the most crucial element will be the “digital exhaust” left behind.
“The second piece of this, and the biggest one, is the digital imagery, the digital exhaust that investigators are going through right now from the kidnappers, quote unquote, ‘kidnappers’, random note,” Gagliano stated. “From the door ring bell that was removed, but they might still be able to harvest some forensic evidence there. Things like that are probably gonna solve this case, and we all hope and pray it’s gonna have a good conclusion.”