Nancy Guthrie
Nancy Guthrie

Investigators may be close to identifying a person claiming to have information on the Nancy Guthrie case, according to TMZ founder Harvey Levin, who has received numerous messages from the purported tipster over the course of the investigation.

A Persistent Pattern of Communications

Nancy Guthrie, the mother of Today anchor Savannah Guthrie, has been missing since February 1 and is believed to have been taken from her home. Since her disappearance, an individual has repeatedly contacted TMZ claiming knowledge of who kidnapped her and where she can be found. "We've gotten more than a half dozen emails from this person. This is somebody who says they know who the kidnappers are, plural, and where Nancy Guthrie is," Levin said.

The Money Demands Have Escalated

The sender's financial demands have shifted multiple times over the course of the communications. In one exchange, the individual demanded "two $50,000 bitcoin payments" to disclose the person responsible for taking Guthrie from her Tucson home. In a more recent message, Levin said the demand had narrowed: "We got another letter today from this person, an email saying, 'I know where her body is and who the kidnapper is. Give me half a Bitcoin and I'll tell you.' And this person has been really persistent, knowing that if it's a scam, it's a federal crime."

A Clue Pointing Toward Mexico

The tipster's messages have also contained specific geographic claims about where the investigation should focus. The sender wrote that authorities pursuing "the main individual that can give you all the answers" should "be prepared to go international." Levin added: "To me, that can only mean Mexico." A more recent communication went further, with the sender claiming Guthrie is in Sonora, Mexico, and that she is dead.

The Sender's Stated Fear of Being Implicated

Throughout the exchanges, the individual has repeatedly expressed concern about facing legal consequences for whatever connection they have to the case. "This person also said that he was afraid that he might be implicated," Levin explained. "He had a burglary on his record from I think he said 11 years before, and apparently he knew these kidnappers well enough that he was afraid he might be implicated." The sender purportedly said he wanted the money so he could go "underground" and avoid retribution.

Why Levin Believes the Messages Could Be Genuine

Levin has pointed to a specific shift in the sender's language as one reason he believes the communications may be authentic rather than a hoax. After initially stating that "time is of the essence," the individual later wrote that time was "no longer of the essence," implying Guthrie was no longer alive. "For him to say 'It's no longer of the essence,' to me, it felt more truthful because he was taking away the urgency to pay the money," Levin said.

Levin Offered to Act as a Go-Between

In a notable development, Levin revealed he proposed serving as an intermediary between the FBI and the anonymous sender. "You know, I had to talk to the FBI about something this morning, and I just said, 'Look, you know, why don't I just do this?' And I got a return call, and they said we would not oppose that," Levin said. Under that proposal, Levin told the sender he didn't need to trust the FBI directly — he could give the information to TMZ, which would pass it along, preserving a record that the sender provided the tip in case it led to an arrest and the associated reward money. The sender, according to Levin, responded with "frustration" but did not agree to the offer.

The FBI's Limited Engagement With the Tips

Despite describing the bureau as "keenly interested" in the communications, Levin and TMZ colleagues have said the FBI has never moved to pay the requested funds. The FBI has not deposited any money into the Bitcoin account, suggesting investigators may be concerned the emails could be a hoax. TMZ co-executive producer Charles Latibeaudiere said that's "definitely a concern that they have that this is someone who's punking" the outlet and investigators. Separately, Levin said the FBI did attempt to trace the actual kidnappers by depositing a small sum into a Bitcoin account, though the effort to trace the recipient was unsuccessful.

Distinguishing the Tip Emails From the Original Ransom Notes

Levin has been careful to separate the ongoing tipster communications from a distinct set of ransom notes received by TMZ and two Tucson television stations shortly after Guthrie's disappearance. Levin said the ransom note "stands on its own separately" from the tip emails, even though Latibeaudiere noted the writing style of all the communications "sounds like exactly the same person," with the tip emails referencing the earlier messages.

Disputing Reports About the Ransom Note's Contents

Levin has also pushed back directly on recent media reports characterizing the original ransom note as containing an apology or explicit confirmation of Guthrie's death. "I wanna talk about Nancy Guthrie and some communications I had with the FBI that I haven't talked about until now," Levin said in a video posted to TMZ's YouTube. "But I want to start with these reports that this ransom letter that we received kind of apologizes to Savannah Guthrie and her family for the kidnapping and that Nancy was no longer alive. That was not in the ransom note that we received." "It is not in that ransom note at all," Levin reiterated.

An Echo of an Unsolved Historical Case

Levin has drawn a comparison between the ongoing pattern of taunting communications in the Guthrie case and one of the most notorious unsolved crimes in American history. The twists and turns of the case remind Levin of the Zodiac Killer, who was able to keep police at bay nearly 60 years ago, killing at least five people while claiming through notes to have killed more. He was never caught. Levin has noted, however, that advances in forensics and surveillance make it considerably harder to get away with a high-profile crime today. "We're now in a time where you can't hide from anything ... there are cameras everywhere, there are ways to track people, there is DNA," he said.

Where the Investigation Stands

Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos, whose department is the lead agency on the case, has said the FBI has been handling the investigation into numerous ransom demands, some bogus and some with potential to be real, since the beginning, deferring further comment to the bureau. No one has been arrested in Guthrie's disappearance.

With Levin continuing to forward each new communication from the anonymous tipster to federal investigators, and with the FBI reportedly remaining "keenly interested" in the messages without yet authorizing any payment, the path toward identifying the sender — and determining whether their claims about Guthrie's fate are genuine — remains unresolved. Anyone with information on Guthrie's case is asked to call 1-800-CALL-FBI. A combined reward of more than $1.2 million remains available for information that leads to a resolution of the case.

Read more