Nancy Guthrie update: Surprise activity near missing mom's Tucson home adds new twist to mystery
More than six months after Nancy Guthrie disappeared, a neighbor says FBI agents were seen searching the desert brush behind her Tucson, Arizona home, while a retired law enforcement official says recent monsoon rains may have changed the landscape and possibly exposed new evidence.
FBI reportedly returns to search area near Nancy Guthrie’s home
Nancy Guthrie has now been missing for over six months and investigators are running low on leads. According to the reports of RadarOnline and Fox News, a neighbor of Savannah Guthrie’s missing mother said she spotted FBI agents searching through the brush behind her home after heavy monsoon rains hit Tucson.
According to Fox News Digital, the neighbor said she saw the agents in late July, just a few days before Nancy Guthrie’s disappearance reached the six-month mark on August 1. A spokesperson for the Pima County Sheriff’s Department said no task force investigators had recently returned to the area. However, the neighbor, who lives a few houses away, said she recognized some of the faces from earlier searches in the case.
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Why investigators may have returned to Nancy Guthrie’s neighborhood
Retired Pima County Sheriff’s Department lieutenant and former SWAT commander Bob Krygier explained to Fox News Digital why investigators might have gone back to the area. “There’s a couple of different reasons that go through my mind first is going to be they got some leads, they got some new tips that are viable, and they’re out there looking for something specific or in an area specific to that, because I’m certain that they’ve searched those areas already,” he said.
Krygier added that six months into the case and authorities may also want a fresh set of eyes on it. He also pointed to the weather as a possible factor, since monsoon season could have moved or exposed evidence that wasn’t visible before. “About a month ago, monsoon season started here in Tucson, and a lot of water has come down- a lot of water at once, and it pushes things,” he said. “So it’s moved the environment. Rocks have been pushed away.”
As per Fox News Digital, floodwaters in the area can rise as high as 12 feet, enough to sweep away vehicles, trees, and even people. “All that water, it’s rushing fast, and it’s taken not only the people, but it’s taken cars, it’s taken trees, branches, rocks, all of this stuff, and basically turned into a big blender,” Krygier said.
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FBI and sheriff’s office remain at odds over investigation
According to RadarOnline, the investigation has also seen disagreements between the FBI and the Pima County Sheriff’s Department. In May, Sheriff Chris Nanos said he was no longer speaking directly with the Guthrie family and that the FBI was handling those conversations. FBI Director Kash Patel later said his agency was “kept out of the investigation” for four days, but Nanos called that claim “factually inaccurate.”
A source told RadarOnline, “Instead of advancing the case, Pima County and the FBI are playing the blame game. That is unacceptable when a kidnapper remains at large.” The insider added, “The question on everyone’s mind is simple: Why hasn’t the FBI taken a more active role in the investigation? The reputation of law enforcement is at stake.”
Sheriff Nanos said last month that his department is “working hard every day with all our partners” and reiterated that “This case is not cold.”
Nancy, the 84-year-old mother of “Today” co-host Savannah Guthrie, went missing on February 1, when police believe she was abducted from her Tucson home. Investigators have released doorbell camera footage of a masked suspect and sent DNA for testing at the FBI lab in Quantico but no suspects have been named publicly yet. Investigation is still underway.