Savannah Guthrie begs for help as ransom notes claim her mother Nancy died after February kidnapping
Two anonymous messages say Nancy Guthrie, 84, died unintentionally shortly after she was taken from her Tucson home on 1 February. Her daughter, the Today co-host, returned to air pleading for tips and a $1 million reward remains.
Disappearance and video evidence
Nancy Guthrie was last seen near her home in Tucson, Arizona, on the night of 31 January, and the FBI later released doorbell-camera footage showing a masked, apparently armed man at the residence. The 84-year-old mother of NBC Today host Savannah Guthrie vanished on 1 February and authorities have treated the case as a kidnapping from the start.
Ransom notes and death claim
Two letters were sent to the Guthrie family and multiple US news outlets in the days after the disappearance. The first demanded a ransom of millions of dollars (one Spanish-language report cited six million dollars in bitcoin) for Nancy’s release. A second note, whose contents were not disclosed until 22 June, claimed that Nancy had died shortly after the abduction and that her death was not intentional. Investigators believe both communications are authentic and came from the kidnappers. No body has been recovered and no proof of life has ever been offered.
- Nancy Guthrie disappears from her Tucson home; security footage shows a masked armed man.
- First ransom note demands millions of dollars for her release.
- Second note claims Nancy died unintentionally shortly after the kidnapping.
- Savannah Guthrie returns to Today after 64-day absence.
- Savannah makes emotional plea on Today, begging for information.
Savannah’s emotional return to Today
On 23 June, Savannah Guthrie addressed the new details for the first time on the Today show, sitting alongside her co-hosts.
She had taken a leave of absence after the kidnapping, missing NBC’s Winter Olympics coverage, and returned to the programme in April.Somebody knows something. This is a news story today that is on your radar, but this is the life that my sister lives, that I live, that my brother lives, that our extended families live, that our children live every day, and we are in agony.
Plea for information and ongoing case
Flanked by her siblings Camron and Annie, the presenter stressed that a reward remains available and urged anyone with a tip to come forward, even anonymously.
Co-host Craig Melvin directed viewers to a tip line. The case, initially a missing-person investigation, is now being handled as a criminal homicide. President Trump ordered federal and local law enforcement to support the family, according to reports in Spanish-language media.Please do the right thing for us, for our family, for our children. We love our mom, and we’ll never stop looking for her ever.
