Pima County Sheriff Warns of QR Code Scam Exploiting Nancy Guthrie Investigation as Search Passes 164 Days

The Pima County Sheriff's Department issued a warning Monday about a scam circulating online that uses a fraudulent QR code to solicit money in connection with the search for Nancy Guthrie, the 84-year-old mother of "Today" show co-anchor Savannah Guthrie who has now been missing for more than 164 days.

In a statement posted to social media, the department said it had become aware of posts about the Guthrie investigation that include a QR code requesting payment. "The Pima County Sheriff's Department is aware of posts circulating about the Guthrie Investigation that include a QR code requesting money," the statement, issued under Sheriff Chris Nanos, read. "PCSD will never ask for money related to this case, or any investigation. Please do not send money to people you do not know or scan QR codes requesting payment." The department urged the public to ignore and report any such posts rather than engage with them, adding, "Stay alert and help spread the word."

The scam warning marks the latest instance of fraudulent activity tied to Guthrie's disappearance since she went missing from her Catalina Foothills home outside Tucson on the night of January 31. It follows a fake GoFundMe campaign flagged by authorities in March and the guilty plea earlier this month of a California man, Derrick Anthony Callella, who admitted to sending fabricated ransom messages to Guthrie's daughter, Annie, and her son-in-law, Tommaso Cioni, in February. Callella was charged with two counts of harassment using a telecommunications device and is scheduled for sentencing in September. Nanos had also previously addressed a separate demand letter that circulated on social media last month, telling a Tucson radio station he believed it was likely fake, noting that "the FBI has done a number of arrests for false or fake ransom notes."

Guthrie was reported missing on February 1 after a friend alerted her family that she had not shown up for a scheduled church service. Family members searched her property before contacting the Pima County Sheriff's Department around noon that day, and Nanos later confirmed a shift in the investigation's framing, telling reporters, "I believe she was abducted." Investigators have pointed to a range of physical evidence recovered from the scene, including bloodstains outside her front door later confirmed to belong to Guthrie, signs of forced entry, and doorbell camera footage recovered from backend systems showing a masked, armed individual tampering with the camera the morning of her disappearance. All members of the Guthrie family, including spouses, have been formally cleared as suspects in the case.

The renewed scam warning comes amid ongoing scrutiny of both the investigation's pace and Savannah Guthrie's continued public role while her mother remains missing. Guthrie was again absent from her seat on Monday's broadcast of "Today," replaced by co-host Sheinelle Jones for the second time in as many weeks, according to reporting from Jubilee Cast. In late June, Guthrie made an emotional on-air appeal to viewers following reports that one of the ransom notes sent to her family had claimed her mother was dead. "I just want to take the opportunity to ask people, to really to beg people to come forward. Somebody knows something," Guthrie said at the time. "This is a new story today that is on your radar, but this is the life that my sister lives, I live, my brother lives, our extended families live, our children live every day. We are in agony." She continued, "We cannot be at peace no matter how much I try to come out here every day and smile and find that joy, and I will, I promise I will, this is the moment to tell you that we need your help. We're begging for your help. I'm not going to miss that opportunity. And so please, if you're watching, no matter how small the reward is there, you can tell us. It can be anonymous. Please do the right thing for us, for our family, for our children. We love our mom. We'll never stop looking for her, never."

More recently, Guthrie issued a statement to Tucson-based outlet KOLD 13 News marking five months since her mother's disappearance. "It is five months of agony and unending trauma for our family," she said. "There is not a moment that goes by that we aren't actively trying to find our mom. We thank the people of Tucson for holding her in their hearts, as well as both the FBI and the Pima County Sheriff's Office for their tireless work on behalf of our family. Bring her home."

Separately, a new TMZ report citing an unnamed FBI source claimed that whoever took Guthrie panicked following her death and subsequently retreated from earlier money demands, though that account has not been independently confirmed by law enforcement and remains part of an active, unresolved investigation. No suspects have been officially named in the case, and no arrests directly tied to Guthrie's disappearance have been made more than five months after she was reported missing.

Nanos has previously described the investigation's continued reliance on forensic genealogy and DNA analysis as a central piece of the ongoing effort to identify a suspect, telling KOLD 13 News, "Especially when you throw in genealogy — now, you've got... this may not be the bad guy, but this person might be the bad guy's relative three times over. So, that has to be broken down to see if this might be someone of interest to us." The FBI has separately increased its financial reward in the case from $50,000 to $100,000 for information leading to Guthrie's location or the arrest and conviction of anyone involved in her disappearance, part of a combined reward from the FBI, 88-CRIME and the Guthrie family that now totals more than $1.2 million.

Anyone with information related to Nancy Guthrie's disappearance is urged to contact the Pima County Sheriff's Department at 520-351-4900 or 88-CRIME at 520-882-7463. Digital photos, video or doorbell-camera footage can be submitted directly to the FBI at fbi.gov/findguthrie. Authorities have continued to stress that no legitimate communication from investigators will ever request money, and have asked the public to report any posts, emails or messages claiming otherwise as the search for Nancy Guthrie continues.