US police believe Savannah Guthrie’s missing mother is ‘still out there’
A $50,000 reward has been offered for information leading to an arrest
Arizona police say they believe Nancy Guthrie, the missing mother of US news anchor Savannah Guthrie, “is still out there”, though they have yet to identify a suspect in her disappearance five days after she vanished.
Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos said investigators were working under the assumption that the 84-year-old is still alive and were “going to continue thinking that way until we find her”.
The FBI said it was reviewing two ransom notes, and added that officers had made an arrest over a fake note.
On Thursday night, Nancy Guthrie’s family posted their second video message this week appealing for the return of their mother.
Whoever is out there holding our mother, we want to hear from you,” said her son, Camron Guthrie.
“We need a way to communicate with you so we can move forward,” he continued.
“But first, we have to know that you have our mom, and we want to talk to you.”
It is standard procedure in hostage and kidnap cases for negotiators to demand proof of life from abductors.
At news briefing earlier on Thursday, FBI Special Agent Heith Janke said his agency was reviewing a ransom note sent to several media outlets.
The note gave a deadline for payment of 17:00 on Thursday, he said, without specifying which time zone, and had a second deadline for Monday.
Details about an Apple watch and a floodlight at Nancy Guthrie’s home were in the note.
The FBI agent said the Guthrie family understand that “time is of the essence”.
Investigators gave new details at the news conference about the timeline of her disappearance.
