Nancy Guthrie Update: Ex-FBI Agent Says Video ‘One of Best Leads to Date’

A former FBI agent said surveillance footage from a neighbor’s Ring camera on the morning of Nancy Guthrie’s disappearance is “one of the best leads” that law enforcement have.

The footage, captured between midnight and 6 a.m. on February 1, shows a dozen cars traveling along a possible route away from Nancy Guthrie’s home, Fox News reported.

According to the outlet, some of the activity occurred around 2:30 a.m., which is near the time that authorities said Nancy Guthrie’s pacemaker last synced with her iPhone.

Jennifer Coffindaffer, who worked as a special agent in the FBI for 25 years, wrote on X that the footage “could just be the break in the case investigators need.”

A Comcast vehicle sits in the driveway of Nancy Guthrie’s home on February 26 in Tucson, Arizona. | Joe Raedle/Getty Images

The Context

Nancy Guthrie, the 84-year-old mother of Today show co-host Savannah Guthrie, has been missing for more than three weeks. She was last seen at her home just outside Tucson, Arizona, on January 31 and was reported missing the next day. Authorities believe she was kidnapped and said drops of her blood were found on the front porch.

Since the first days of her disappearance, authorities have expressed concern about Nancy Guthrie’s health because she needs vital daily medication.

What To Know

Coffindaffer added that the FBI would be working to determine the make and model of the vehicle seen on the footage at 2:30 a.m. as law enforcement did in the aftermath of the slayings of four University of Idaho students in 2022. Investigators linked Bryan Kohberger to the crime after identifying a white sedan spotted near the crime scene as a Hyundai Elantra and asking regional law enforcement to be on the lookout for a vehicle matching that description.

“You can bet the FBI is determining the make and model just like they did in the Idaho 4 case. They will get every available analyst on it to look through registrations,” Coffindaffer wrote on X.

The Pima County Sheriff’s Department told Newsweek on Thursday that it was aware of the video and that the property it was captured from “appears to be a bit further from the Guthrie home.”

The sheriff’s department has sought surveillance footage from neighbors within a 2-mile radius of Nancy Guthrie’s residence, from January 1 to February 2, and urged anyone who hasn’t submitted video to do so through its website.

On February 10, the FBI released surveillance video from Nancy Guthrie’s doorbell camera showing an individual wearing a ski mask, a jacket, long pants, gloves and a handgun holster. The FBI later called the person a suspect and described him as a man about 5 feet, 9 or 10 inches tall with an average build.

The sheriff’s department said on Friday that although investigators were seeking information “related to the person seen on video, investigators are not ruling out the possibility that more than one person may be involved.”

The sheriff’s department said on Monday that it was aware of differences in the masked person’s clothing depicted in various images that were released, namely with and without a backpack. That came after reports that said the masked man seen in the footage was spotted at Nancy Guthrie’s house at an earlier date.

The sheriff’s department said there was “no date or time stamp associated with these images” and “any suggestion that the photographs were taken on different days is purely speculative.”

Last week, authorities said DNA from gloves found a few miles from Nancy Guthrie’s home did not match any entries in CODIS, the FBI’s national database. The agency has said the gloves appear to match the gloves worn by a masked person seen in the surveillance footage.

Investigators also collected DNA from Nancy Guthrie’s property that didn’t belong to her or those in close contact with her, the sheriff’s department said. They were turning to investigative genetic genealogy in a bid to track down the suspect, the department said.

Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos told NBC News last week that there were challenges with the DNA found inside Nancy Guthrie’s home because it was partial and mixed, but that he was hopeful the samples would get to a point where they could be submitted for investigative genetic genealogy or entered into CODIS.

The sheriff’s department said on Wednesday that all evidence collected from the crime scene and related search locations “has been submitted for forensic analysis. The laboratory is processing the evidence. There are no additional updates at this time.”

Volunteers have continued to search for Nancy Guthrie though the sheriff department has asked people to give investigators space to do their jobs.

On Sunday, a group of volunteers found a backpack, but it wasn’t the same brand as the one identified as being worn by the masked person in the surveillance footage the FBI released. A spokesperson for the sheriff’s department said it was not a “viable lead” for the investigation.

Savannah Guthrie said on Tuesday that her family was offering a $1 million reward for information leading to the recovery of her mother.

She said her family was still holding out for a miracle and hoped her mother would be found alive, but she also acknowledged that they realized it might be too late.

What People Are Saying

The Pima County Sheriff’s Department told Newsweek via email on Thursday: “We are aware of the video. I’m told that the property appears to be a bit further from the Guthrie home. We asked homeowners in the area to submit video and encourage anyone who hasn’t to please do so via this link: https://pimasheriff.evidence.com/axon/community-request/public/nancy-guthrie.”

FBI Phoenix wrote on X on Wednesday: “The family of missing Tucson woman Nancy Guthrie is offering a private $1 million reward for credible information that directly leads to her return.”

The agency added: “The FBI’s $100,000 reward also remains active. To help keep the tip line available for actionable investigative law enforcement leads, please submit only serious and detailed fact-based information—no well-wishes or case theories. The tip line is not for personal messages to the Guthrie family.”

Savannah Guthrie said in a video posted on Instagram on Tuesday: “We still believe. We still believe in a miracle. We still believe that she can come home—hope against hope, as my sister says: We are blowing on the embers of hope.

“We also know that she may be lost. She may already be gone. She may have already gone home to the Lord that she loves and is dancing in heaven with her mom and her dad, and with her beloved brother Pierce, and with our daddy. And if this is what is to be, then we will accept it. But we need to know where she is. We need her to come home. For that reason, we are offering a family reward of up to $1 million dollars for any information that leads us to her recovery.”