Nancy Guthrie Case: Sheriff Dismisses New Ransom Note as Fake Amid Five Months Without Concrete Answers

The Pima County sheriff leading the investigation into the disappearance of Nancy Guthrie pushed back firmly this week against the latest in a string of anonymous letters claiming knowledge of the 84-year-old's fate, dismissing the most recent communication as likely another fraudulent ransom note nearly five months into the case.

Sheriff Chris Nanos addressed the development during an appearance on KVOI AM 1030's Buckmaster Show on Friday, June 26. "I think the FBI has done a number of arrests for false or fake ransom notes," Nanos said. "It's a shame that that happens, but I think we're looking at another one of those today with what's been reported, but we'll let the FBI do their work."

The note that prompted the response

The comments came after TMZ reported receiving a new letter from a person it had previously been in contact with, who claimed to know the identities of two people responsible for Guthrie's kidnapping and said he possessed video footage of the "main guy" together with Guthrie on what he described as "the day that was probably her last." According to TMZ, the sender wrote, "I have a phone stashed in a secure location guaranteeing both the information it stores and the safety of the phone," and offered to provide the device's password in exchange for one Bitcoin.

Nanos made clear that the FBI, not his department, holds primary responsibility for vetting such claims. "Those two... that someone believes may or may not have some legitimacy to them, and the FBI is working that," he said. "I can't tell you much more on that, because it would be inappropriate. It is ongoing."

The sheriff also addressed the broader phenomenon of false claims surfacing in high-profile cases. "It is a shame that these type of events occur, people have great interest... that's good because it helps us, but then it gets really gets abused," Nanos said. He added that some individuals chasing attention around the case have caused real disruption to Guthrie's neighborhood, separately criticizing content creators who were arrested near her Tucson-area home for the way they "get out and disturb... an entire neighborhood."

Two competing notes and a media dispute

The TMZ letter is only the latest entry in a confusing trail of correspondence that has surrounded the case for months. According to multiple outlets, a first ransom note was sent February 2 to local Tucson television stations and TMZ, demanding millions of dollars in Bitcoin in exchange for Guthrie's safe return, and reportedly included specific details about her home, including a broken light on the back porch and a white-banded Apple Watch found on her bedroom floor. A second note, sent to Tucson CBS affiliate KOLD, has been reported by NBC News and other outlets as stating that Guthrie died after her abduction.

That second claim has not gone unchallenged. TMZ founder Harvey Levin disputed the characterization in a video posted to YouTube, saying directly that the version of events describing an apology to the Guthrie family and confirmation of Nancy's death "was not in the ransom note that we received." The discrepancy has left competing, unverified accounts of what the notes actually say circulating across different news outlets.

Savannah Guthrie's emotional plea

The renewed wave of speculation prompted an on-air response from Guthrie's daughter, "Today" co-anchor Savannah Guthrie, who addressed colleagues and viewers directly after the death-related note first circulated. "I love you guys, and I love this place and this is unusual and unprecedented," she told her co-hosts. "I don't have any comment on this story and I'm not involved in our coverage, but I can't pretend I'm not here and so since I am, I wanted to just take that opportunity to ask people to come forward."

She continued with a broader appeal to anyone who might have information. "Someone knows something. And this story today is a news story on your radar but this is the life my sister lives, that I live, that my brother lives, that our extended families live, that our children live, every day," Guthrie said. "And we are in agony. We cannot be in peace, however much I try to come out here every day, and I will find that joy, I promise I will. But we need your help. We are begging for your help and I'm not going to miss that opportunity. If you are watching, the reward is there, you can tell us. It can be anonymous. Please do the right thing for us, for our children. We love our mom and we will never stop looking for her."

A "distraction" theory from a legal expert

Outside the official investigation, at least one legal analyst has floated a theory that the wave of anonymous claims may be intentionally designed to mislead investigators rather than provide genuine information. Prosecutor-turned-defense attorney RJ Dreiling told HELLO! that the pattern fits with the broader theory that someone familiar with the Guthrie family may be involved. "The lack of follow-through on any ransom demand makes it look like it was a distraction meant to throw off investigators," Dreiling said, describing the person potentially responsible as "intelligent enough to completely hide their tracks, including DNA, fingerprints, and electronic data, but also deranged enough to kidnap this woman out of her home and hold her hostage."

Scrutiny on the sheriff himself

Nanos has faced his own separate controversy while leading the investigation. The Pima County Board of Supervisors considered, but ultimately did not advance, a motion to remove him from office in May after the Arizona Republic reported discrepancies in his publicly listed work history, including a 1982 resignation he had described differently in sworn testimony. The board did vote to refer allegations of possible perjury to the Arizona attorney general. A spokesperson for the sheriff's department has said the discrepancies "were administrative in nature" and "not intended to mislead or misrepresent Sheriff Nanos' work history." Nanos addressed the effort to remove him on the Buckmaster Show, saying, "It has always been my belief, the people who voted me in will also have this, the option to vote me out," and said he did not believe his handling of the Guthrie case was a factor in the push against him.

Where the case stands

Guthrie disappeared from her home in the Catalina Foothills near Tucson on the night of February 1, and investigators believe she was abducted. The FBI has released doorbell camera footage showing a masked, armed man near her home around the time she vanished, and officials have said drops of her blood were found on her front stoop. All members of Guthrie's immediate family and their spouses have been formally cleared as suspects. Despite a reward that has grown to $1 million from the family, plus an additional FBI reward, no arrests have been announced in the case. The Sheriff's Department has said the investigation remains "active and ongoing," and that it "will continue to follow up on any credible information" as it nears the five-month mark with Nancy Guthrie's whereabouts still unknown.