As the search for Savannah Guthrie’s mother, Nancy, stretches into its sixth day, the tension around the case is growing.
Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos, one of the lead officials in the investigation, became visibly emotional during a new interview with NBC’s Liz Kreutz that aired on the Today show on Friday, Feb. 6.
With no suspects or persons of interest publicly identified, Kreutz asked Nanos what keeps him believing the 84-year-old mother of three could still be alive.
“You have to have hope,” Nanos said, his voice shaking. “You have to have hope. Come on, this is somebody’s mom. We’re gonna find her.”
The Guthrie family has spoken publicly more than once, urging whoever may have taken Nancy to contact them so they can address any ransom demands and establish a clear line of communication.
In an emotional video posted Feb. 4, Savannah and her siblings, Annie and Camron, appealed directly to the people who they believe have their mother.
“As a family, we are doing everything that we can. We are ready to talk,” Savannah said in the video. “However, we live in a world where voices and images are easily manipulated. We need to know without a doubt that she is alive and that you have her. We want to hear from you and we are ready to listen. Please, reach out to us.”
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A day later, in a second video posted Feb. 5, Camron again asked for direct contact.
“Whoever is out there holding our mother, we want to hear from you,” he said. “We haven’t heard anything directly. We need you to reach out and we need a way to communicate with you so we can move forward.”
Authorities said in a press conference Thursday that they are still reviewing a ransom note that was shared with the media demanding bitcoin. Investigators also revealed that a separate fake ransom demand led to an arrest Thursday morning.
“My next message is to those imposters who are trying to take advantage and profit from this situation,” FBI Agent Heith Janke said. “We will investigate and ensure you are held accountable for your actions.”
He added that the arrest does not appear to be connected to the case itself: “We believe there’s no evidence to connect this to Nancy’s case. It was someone that was trying to profit from it, a total imposter.”
Nancy was last seen at her Arizona home on Saturday, Jan. 31, after being dropped off by her daughter Annie. She was reported missing after she did not show up at church the following day.
