FBI Confirms Nancy Guthrie Case Is Still a Kidnapping Investigation Despite Ransom Notes Being Deemed Fake

The FBI said Wednesday it continues to treat the disappearance of Nancy Guthrie, the 84-year-old mother of "Today" show co-anchor Savannah Guthrie, as a kidnapping for ransom case even after federal investigators determined that some of the most widely publicized ransom notes in the five-month-old investigation were not credible.

The Phoenix FBI field office posted a statement on social media clarifying its position after a Reuters report Tuesday, based on comments from an anonymous FBI official, suggested the bureau had concluded that all three kidnapping-related messages that had attracted widespread media coverage were fraudulent.

"Some have been determined to be extortion attempts without legitimacy," the FBI's Phoenix office said in its statement. "Other ransom demands may potentially be legitimate and are still being investigated as such."

The statement concluded with the key line distinguishing Wednesday's clarification from Tuesday's reporting.

"This case continues to be investigated as a kidnapping for ransom case," the FBI said.

The nuanced position drawn by the bureau reflects what investigators described as a distinction between the specific messages that have been publicly reported and characterized by media organizations and a broader set of communications that have come in over the investigation's five-month duration, some of which remain under active review. The bureau did not identify which notes, if any, it is treating as potentially legitimate or explain why those might be more credible than the three messages that received the widest public attention.

The case began on January 31, when Nancy Guthrie was dropped off at her home in the Catalina Foothills neighborhood of Tucson, Arizona, by her daughter Annie and son-in-law Tommaso Cioni following a family dinner, at approximately 9:50 p.m. A church friend notified family members the following morning when Guthrie failed to appear for a scheduled online service. Relatives who went to check on her home found her missing and called authorities around noon on February 1. A search of the residence found her wallet, cellphone, hearing aid and medication all left behind. Blood found on the front porch of the home was later confirmed by DNA testing to belong to Guthrie.

Three specific kidnapping-related messages attracted the most significant media coverage following her disappearance, and it is those three notes that the anonymous FBI official speaking to Reuters on Tuesday characterized as not credible.

The first note was received by KOLD-TV, a CBS affiliate in Tucson, on February 2, just two days after Guthrie was reported missing. The FBI disclosed at the time that it was taking the note seriously while working to determine its authenticity. The note set two deadlines for a ransom to be paid in Bitcoin cryptocurrency, with a threatening warning attached if those deadlines were not met. The FBI subsequently deposited a small amount of cryptocurrency into the address specified in the note as a test to determine whether anyone with actual knowledge of Guthrie's whereabouts would claim the funds. The money was never moved or withdrawn, a finding investigators cited as evidence against the note's credibility.

A second note, also received by KOLD-TV, was reported by NBC News last week to have made reference to Guthrie as having died, with the sender expressing regret that she had perished and stating she had not been intended for harm. Unlike the first note, the second contained no financial demand and no offer to return Guthrie's body in exchange for payment, which investigators interpreted as a shift in the sender's strategy rather than a sign of two distinct senders. The FBI official speaking to Reuters said both the first and second notes are believed to have originated from the same sender.

The third message received significant attention after celebrity news outlet TMZ reported receiving it last week from someone claiming to know the identities of those responsible for Guthrie's disappearance and to possess video footage of the so-called "main guy" involved, as well as footage of Guthrie on the day she allegedly died. TMZ said it forwarded the email to the FBI for review. Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos had already publicly expressed skepticism about that message before the FBI's broader clarification, characterizing it as likely another fraudulent submission consistent with a pattern of fake notes the bureau had previously investigated.

Beyond the three publicly reported notes, federal investigators have also dealt with at least one confirmed case of someone fraudulently attempting to exploit the case for personal gain. Heith Janke, the head of the FBI's Phoenix field office, disclosed at a February 5 news conference that someone had been arrested in connection with an imposter ransom demand sent directly to members of the Guthrie family. Court records show Derrick Callella was charged with two counts of harassment by telecom devices for sending a fake ransom demand via text message to Savannah Guthrie's sister and brother-in-law on February 4. Callella subsequently pleaded not guilty to those charges, but a change-of-plea hearing in his case was scheduled for Thursday in federal court in Tucson, court records show.

The Pima County Sheriff's Department, which is leading the overall investigation alongside the FBI, released a statement Wednesday reaffirming that every tip and lead it receives is forwarded directly to detectives working in coordination with federal agents, while declining to offer additional comment on the FBI's assessment of the ransom notes. Sheriff's spokesperson Angelica Carrillo said the case remains active.

For Savannah Guthrie, who has continued anchoring the "Today" show throughout the investigation while periodically making on-air appeals for information, Wednesday's FBI clarification offered a measured degree of reassurance that the case remains alive as a kidnapping investigation rather than one being wound down. She has not commented publicly on Wednesday's specific developments but has consistently urged anyone with knowledge of her mother's whereabouts to come forward, referencing the $1 million reward her family has offered in addition to the FBI's existing $100,000 reward for information leading to Guthrie's location or to the arrest and conviction of those responsible.

No suspects or persons of interest have been publicly identified by the Pima County Sheriff's Department or the FBI in connection with Nancy Guthrie's disappearance, leaving the investigation without a confirmed lead after five months, even as the bureau maintains its official position that the case is being treated as an active kidnapping for ransom investigation.