Nancy Guthrie update today: Mystery of Savannah’s missing mom deepens after ‘detained subject’ released

Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said yesterday President Donald Trump had reviewed the footage of the Nancy Guthrie suspect shortly before her daily briefing.

“His initial reaction, of course, as all Americans, is just pure disgust,” Leavitt reported. “It’s heartbreaking to see now this footage really bring to life a story we’ve all been reading about. And again, we’re just praying for the safety of Nancy Guthrie and that she will return home soon.

“The president directed me to please encourage all Americans with any information to call the FBI, and we hope that this case will come to a positive resolution as soon as possible.”

She added that anyone responsible for the apparent abduction should face punishment to the “fullest extent of the law.”

The food delivery company put out this message a short while ago, saying it had offered its help to law enforcement and expressing sympathy with the Guthrie family “during this heart-wrenching time.”

The person in question has been released without charge after questioning, denying any involvement with, or even knowledge of, the case.

Experts say abductions for ransom are rare, despite the prevalence of dramatic hostage crises on television. But the apparent kidnapping of Today show host Savannah Guthrie’s mother has raised questions about how law enforcement handles hostage negotiations in real life, and the risks of media attention for victims.

Professional hostage negotiators from around the world say that kidnappings depicted on television — where police shout through a bullhorn at heavily armed hostage-takers inside a bank — often misrepresent the delicate touch required for real-world negotiations.

An Arizona woman, who identified herself as Josefina, has told NewsNation about the circumstances in which her son-in-law was detained over the Nancy Guthrie investigation.

“My daughter and he, and the kids, my grandkids, were doing DoorDash when they got stopped here,” Josefina said.

“I told them you can go in and search my house, there is nobody there. I have nothing to hide.”

She told CNN her son-in-law had “nothing to do” with the disappearance but expressed her sorrow for the Guthrie family.

“I’m sorry what’s happened to them,” Josefina said.

“I don’t know her, I don’t know anything about their lives or what’s going on, but I’m so sorry – whoever took her, I hope she got back safe.”

Law enforcement has now completed its search of a property in Rio Rico, the Pima County Sheriff’s Department said.

A woman previously told CNN that the site in question was her home and that authorities were investigating her son-in-law.

Appearing on Sean Hannity’s Fox News show last night, the FBI director said: “We have made substantial progress in the last 36-48 hours… I do believe we are looking at people who, as we say, are persons of interest.”

A night earlier, also on Hannity, Patel’s former deputy Dan Bongino, who stepped down to return to his past life as a Rumble podcaster, offered his own take on what may have happened to Nancy Guthrie, outlining three hypothetical scenarios:

Kash Patel has issued this message of encouragement to his personnel attempting to track down Nancy Guthrie, 11 days on from her sudden disappearance.

Their movements are being closely observed on the ground by local media:

A local journalist has interviewed the man detained and then released in the Guthrie investigation, who says he is a delivery driver and “didn’t even know who this woman was.”

“They told me I was being detained for kidnapping. I asked them, ‘kidnapping of who?’” the man told ABC15 reporter Ford Hatchett.

“I told them… I might have delivered a package to their house but I never kidnapped anybody.”

The person who was detained by police for questioning in the Nancy Guthrie case has now been released, CNN is reporting.

The person in question was pulled over by law enforcement yesterday at a traffic stop in Rio Rico – around an hour’s drive south of Tucson, close to the U.S.-Mexico border.

Their detention was based on investigative leads, a law enforcement official told CNN, but the person was not charged.

The Pima County Sheriff’s Department has meanwhile said this morning that investigators had completed their search of a property in Rio Rico.

Today show host Savannah Guthrie and her siblings have posted a series of videos online since their mother, 84-year-old Nancy Guthrie, went missing earlier this month in a mysterious case that has gripped the nation.

In the Instagram videos, Savannah, Camron and Annie Guthrie acknowledged media reports of a ransom letter. The family has pleaded for their mother’s return and requested proof of life and contact with whoever took their mother. In one, they said they would pay.