TUCSON, Ariz. — Federal investigators say some of the ransom notes tied to the disappearance of Nancy Guthrie, the 84-year-old mother of “Today” show co-anchor Savannah Guthrie, have been determined to be fraudulent extortion attempts, while others remain under active investigation as potentially genuine, more than five months after the Arizona grandmother vanished from her Tucson home.
In a statement issued to multiple news outlets, an FBI official said the bureau and its task force partners have received several ransom notes over the course of the investigation. “Some have been deemed to be extortion attempts without legitimacy,” the official said, adding that “other ransom demands may potentially be legitimate and are still being investigated as such.” The FBI reiterated that the case “continues to be investigated as a kidnapping for ransom case,” though it noted that local authorities remain in charge of overseeing the broader investigation, with federal agents assisting.
The statement came after a Reuters report citing an unnamed FBI official had indicated that three notes connected to the case, including messages sent to media outlets in early February and a more recent note sent to TMZ, had all been determined to be fake. The FBI’s subsequent public statement appeared to walk back or at least complicate that characterization, drawing scrutiny from legal analysts and criminologists who have followed the case closely.
Investigators have said the notes fall into roughly three categories: two notes sent within the first week of Guthrie’s disappearance that investigators believe are likely legitimate, additional notes that could be genuine but lack corroborating details, and a separate set of messages authorities have characterized as opportunistic extortion attempts unrelated to any real knowledge of Guthrie’s whereabouts.
According to details previously reported by news organizations covering the case, the first note arrived on February 2, one day after Guthrie was reported missing from her home just outside Tucson. That message reportedly included specific details about the inside of her house, including the placement of her Apple Watch beside her bed and a broken floodlight on the back porch, details that led investigators to take the note seriously. The note demanded an initial payment of $4 million in bitcoin, threatening an additional $2 million if the deadline was missed. It was sent through tip lines to two local television stations and to TMZ.
A second note arrived four days later, on February 6, and was later determined by the FBI to have originated from the same IP address as the first message, according to law enforcement sources. That note indicated Guthrie had died. In response, Savannah Guthrie and her siblings released a video statement at the time saying, “We received your message and we understand… This is very valuable to us and we will pay.” According to reports, the family never received further communication from whoever sent the note.
Reflecting on the flood of messages the family has received since her mother’s disappearance, Savannah Guthrie said in a March interview that she believed most of the notes were not genuine. “But I believe the two notes that we received that we responded to, I tend to believe those are real,” she said.
The FBI has not disclosed exactly how many ransom notes it has received in total, describing the number only as “several.” One additional message was reportedly sent to TMZ within the past two weeks, adding to the list of communications investigators are working to authenticate or rule out.
Some experts following the case have expressed skepticism about the legitimacy of any of the notes. Crime scene investigator Sheryl McCollum said she remains doubtful of the communications, noting that whoever sent them has not addressed the physical evidence found at the scene. “I need them to write a letter to explain the blood on the front porch,” she said, adding that she believes investigators may be trying to keep the sender engaged in hopes of eventually identifying the person responsible.
Criminologist Casey Jordan offered a similarly skeptical view, telling a news outlet that she believes none of the notes are likely genuine, largely because none of the messages have included proof of life or proof of death. “There is no reason to believe that they’re real,” Jordan said, adding that details referenced in the notes could plausibly have been drawn from publicly available information rather than firsthand knowledge of Guthrie’s fate.
The investigation has already produced one criminal conviction. In early July, a California man, Derrick Callella, 42, pleaded guilty in federal court to two felony charges, including transmitting a ransom demand across state lines and using a telecommunications device to threaten or harass, in connection with a separate false ransom message sent to the Guthrie family. Prosecutors said Callella had tested positive for drugs at the time of his court appearance. He is scheduled to be sentenced on September 10 and faces five years of probation under the terms of his plea agreement.
Guthrie was last seen alive around 9:45 p.m. on January 31, when a family member dropped her off at her home following dinner. She was reported missing the next day, and investigators later found blood near the front doorstep of her residence. The FBI subsequently released doorbell camera footage showing a masked, armed individual outside her home on the night she disappeared, and the bureau has said it continues to analyze DNA evidence recovered from the scene, including a hair sample.
No suspect or motive has been publicly identified in the case, which remains active. A combined reward of $1.2 million is being offered for information leading to Guthrie’s safe recovery. Authorities are asking anyone with information to contact the Pima County Sheriff’s Department tip line or the FBI’s national tip line, as investigators continue working to determine which, if any, of the ransom communications received over the past several months reflect genuine knowledge of what happened to Guthrie.
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