Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos issued a seemingly optimistic update in the Nancy Guthrie case, which crossed the 100 day mark on Monday.
The sheriff, who has faced an immense amount of scrutiny from the public as “Today” anchor Savannah Guthrie’s mother remains missing after an assumed abduction, said he felt they were “getting closer” to uncovering answers in the case.
“Everyday our DNA labs are working with our investigators and they’re coming up with different ideas and different thoughts of how to help them make this DNA work for us,” he told People. “How can we do more with what we have? And so that’s why I say it is — I think we’re getting closer.”
He also recalled the moment he was alerted to Guthrie’s disappearance, telling the outlet he received a text notification around 2 p.m. on Feb. 1. Nanos noted that, not longer after this text, he received another update from the scene, in which he was told that things didn’t “look right” and that they were “calling homicide.”
Though, Nanos clarified that homicide’s involvement didn’t mean investigators assumed the worst, noting, “They are the investigative unit in charge of missing person. Search and rescue is their operational team that helps assist with these issues.”
Nanos’ update comes over a week after FBI director Kash Patel criticized the Pima County Sheriff’s Department for keeping them out of the investigation for days at the start of the search.
“And when we were finally let in … look what we did,” Patel said on the “Hang Out With Sean Hannity” podcast. “We went in and got the Ring doorbell. We said, ‘Hey, is anyone talking to Google?’ I called the leadership at Google and I said, ‘Look, we know that there was not a subscription service to capture all of the data that would have been captured had there been a subscription service. But can we go into the cache? Can we go into the data before it’s deleted and see what we can find?’ That’s why you have that image, because the FBI worked with Google to put that image out.”
Patel also claimed that he had a fixed-wing aircraft ready to fly DNA evidence from the Guthrie case to Quantico, but was turned down by the Pima County Sheriff’s Department.
In response to Patel’s interview, a spokesperson for the Pima County Sheriff’s Department told TheWrap that “Sheriff Nanos responded to the scene the night of the incident, providing immediate local leadership and oversight. A member of the FBI Task Force was also notified and present at that scene working alongside our personnel. The FBI was promptly notified by both our department and the Guthrie family. While the FBI Director was not on scene, coordination with the Bureau began without delay.”
“Decisions regarding evidence processing were made on scene based on operational needs,” the statement continued. “The laboratory utilized by the Pima County Sheriff’s Department and the FBI Laboratory in Quantico have worked in close partnership from the outset and continue to collaborate in the analysis of evidence. We remain committed to a thorough, coordinated, and fact-based investigation and will continue working closely with our federal partners as the process moves forward.”
The mother of “Today” anchor Savannah Guthrie was last seen on the evening of Jan. 31, when family dropped her off at her Tucson, Ariz. home following a dinner and a game night. However, by late-midday on Feb. 1, the elder Guthrie was reported missing after she didn’t show up at a friend’s place to watch a virtual church service. Pima County investigators later shared that they believed Guthrie was taken against her will.
Guthrie’s security camera, which had been disabled, later revealed images of a man in a ski mask, jacket, gloves and a backpack outside her property. FBI Phoenix later described the suspect “as a male, approximately 5’9” – 5’10” tall, with an average build.”
Savannah, along with her siblings, have made several public pleas for their mother’s safe return.
No one has been arrested or named a suspect in connection with Guthrie’s disappearance, despite multiple searches, analyzed DNA, alleged ransom notes and more.
