The Pima County Sheriff’s Department is giving an update on Arizona authorities’ ongoing investigation into the disappearance of Today host Savannah Guthrie’s mother, Nancy Guthrie.
“The Nancy Guthrie Task Force continues to work with our labs in hopes of furthering our DNA analysis in this investigation,” a statement from the department’s official X account shared on Friday, October 30, began. “Earlier this month investigators traveled to Florida to meet with lab scientists to see what more could be done to advance the case.”
The statement continued, “A number of ideas were discussed, and we continue to work with all of our partners to solve this case.”
The department went on to urge the public to get involved in the investigation by sharing any information they know that may be relevant to the unsolved case.
“We want to remind the public that no tip is too small. Even the smallest piece of information could be critical to this investigation,” it concluded. “If you know something, please call 88-CRIME or 1-800-CALL-FBI.”
The statement was signed by Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos, who has come under fire from both the public and FBI officials for his handling of the case, which has captured the nation’s attention since Nancy was first reported missing on February 1.
Weeks after Nancy was last seen on January 31, Reuters and NewsNation reported alleged frustration among federal agents over the handling of evidence, including a glove found inside Nancy’s home. A law enforcement official told Reuters that Nanos had sent evidence to a private laboratory in Florida for testing instead of making use of the FBI’s national crime lab in Quantico, Virginia.
“This is dumb. … It’s insane,” NewsNation quoted an anonymous FBI source as saying.
Nanos denied the reporting, telling KVOA’s Jacob Owens at the time that he was sending evidence to the FBI for DNA testing, but that both the federal agency and Pima County law enforcement agreed to use the private Florida lab, which Nanos said has worked with the department for many years and is handling the case pro bono.
“Actually, the FBI just wanted to send the one or two they found by the crime scene, closest to it — mile, mile and a half,” Nanos said of recently discovered gloves in the area surrounding Nancy’s Catalina Foothills home in Arizona. “I said ‘No, why do that? Let’s just send them all to where all the DNA exist, all the profiles and the markers exist.’ They agreed [that it] makes sense.”
He added at the time, “When this is all done with, offer your critiques all you want, but right now we have work to do.”
FBI director Kash Patel later alleged that evidence was, in fact, kept from the FBI during the initial stages of the local department’s investigation into Nancy’s disappearance.
FBI director Kash Patel is doubling down on claims that local police delayed involving the FBI in the investigation into the disappearance of Nancy Guthrie. Patel, 46, told NewsNation on Thursday, June 4, that his agency offered support to Pima County, Arizona, law enforcement as soon as Nancy, the mother of Today show cohost Savannah […]
“They did,” Patel, 46, claimed on the May 5 episode of Fox News Media’s “Hang Out With Sean Hannity” podcast. “It is a state matter. It’s a state and local law enforcement matter. What we, the FBI, do is say, ‘Hey, we’re here to help. What do you need? What can we do?’ And for four days, we were kept out of the investigation.”
The Pima County Sheriff’s Department later responded to Patel’s claims, telling Us that “Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos is aware of FBI Director Kash Patel’s recent interview and statement.”
“Sheriff Nanos responded to the scene the night of the incident, providing immediate local leadership and oversight,” local authorities said in a written statement to Us. “A member of the FBI Task Force was also notified and present at that scene working alongside our personnel. The FBI was promptly notified by both our department and the Guthrie family. While the FBI Director was not on scene, coordination with the Bureau began without delay.”
The statement continued, “Decisions regarding evidence processing were made on scene based on operational needs. The laboratory utilized by the Pima County Sheriff’s Department and the FBI Laboratory in Quantico have worked in close partnership from the outset and continue to collaborate in the analysis of evidence. We remain committed to a thorough, coordinated and fact-based investigation and will continue working closely with our federal partners as the process moves forward.”
