Nancy Guthrie Case Update: Everything We Know So Far

September 21, 2026 Kaleem A

Nancy Guthrie, the 84-year-old mother of “Today” co-anchor Savannah Guthrie, has been missing since late January 2026 after disappearing from her home in the Catalina Foothills area near Tucson, Arizona.

As of early July 2026, the case remains an active, unsolved kidnapping investigation. The FBI has determined that several ransom notes sent to media outlets were fake, no suspect has been publicly named, and a combined reward of roughly $1.2 million is being offered for information leading to her recovery.

What Is the Nancy Guthrie Case?

The Nancy Guthrie case refers to the ongoing investigation into the disappearance of Nancy Guthrie, an 84-year-old retired schoolteacher and the mother of NBC “Today” show host Savannah Guthrie. Nancy was last seen when her son-in-law, Tommaso Cioni, dropped her off at home in the Catalina Foothills at around 9:48 p.m. Hours later, security footage showed someone tampering with her doorbell camera, and by morning her family realised she had missed church and could not be reached.

The Pima County Sheriff’s Department and the FBI both classify this as an active kidnapping-for-ransom investigation. Despite thousands of tips, forensic testing, and national media coverage, no arrest has been made in connection with the disappearance itself, though one man has pleaded guilty to a related charge of sending fake ransom messages.

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Timeline of the Nancy Guthrie Disappearance

Date	Event
Jan. 31, 2026	Nancy Guthrie is dropped off at home by her daughter Annie and son-in-law around 9:48 p.m.
Feb. 1, 2026 (early hours)	A masked individual disables her doorbell camera; her pacemaker monitoring app disconnects shortly after, suggesting she was moved.
Feb. 1, 2026 (midday)	Family members grow concerned when she misses a planned church service and contact authorities.
Feb. 2, 2026	Pima County Sheriff’s Department officially classifies Nancy Guthrie as missing.
Feb. 4–9, 2026	First ransom note reportedly demands millions in bitcoin, with shifting deadlines.
Feb. 5, 2026	Derrick Callella is later found to have sent a spoofed extortion message to family members on this date.
Feb. 10–13, 2026	FBI releases doorbell camera footage and a suspect description; searches are conducted near Guthrie’s home.
Feb. 24, 2026	Savannah Guthrie announces a family reward, later growing to a combined total near $1.2 million.
June 22–23, 2026	A second ransom note, allegedly sent in February but withheld from the public at investigators’ request, is revealed to have claimed Nancy died shortly after being taken.
June 30, 2026	An FBI official tells Reuters that none of the ransom notes are believed to be genuine.
July 1, 2026	FBI Phoenix publicly confirms it received “several” ransom notes, some deemed fraudulent, others still being evaluated as potentially legitimate.
July 2, 2026	Derrick Callella pleads guilty to two federal counts tied to sending fake ransom messages; sentencing set for Sept. 10.
July 8, 2026	A judge orders Callella into inpatient substance-abuse treatment ahead of sentencing.
July 9, 2026	Retired FBI agent Steve Moore raises concerns about internal disagreement over the case’s direction.

Who Is Nancy Guthrie?

Nancy Ellen Long was born on January 27, 1942, in Fort Wright, Kentucky. She had lived in the Tucson area for more than five decades after moving there with her family in the early 1970s. She is the mother of Savannah Guthrie and, according to reporting, has other adult children, including Annie Guthrie and Camron Guthrie.

Nancy is not a public figure herself, but her disappearance has drawn national attention almost entirely because of her daughter’s high profile as a national television anchor.

The Ransom Notes Explained

This is one of the most confusing parts of the case, because reporting on the ransom notes has shifted multiple times. Here’s a breakdown:

First note: Reportedly demanded several million dollars in bitcoin, with a deadline that was pushed back at least once.
Second note: Sent in February but not made public until June, this note reportedly claimed Nancy had died shortly after being taken and expressed regret over her death.
Third note: Sent to TMZ, this note claimed to know the identity of the abductor and referenced video footage of both the suspect and Nancy.
FBI finding: By late June, an anonymous FBI official told Reuters that none of the notes were believed to be authentic, based partly on a test where the FBI deposited a small amount of bitcoin into the requested wallet and it was never touched.
Public correction: On July 1, the FBI walked that framing back slightly, stating that some notes were “extortion attempts without legitimacy” while others were still being examined as potentially real, and that the case remains classified as kidnapping for ransom.

This back-and-forth is central to nearly every “Guthrie case update today” search, because the story has genuinely changed direction more than once within the same week.

Derrick Callella and the Fake Ransom Note Arrest

The only criminal charge filed so far in this case does not relate directly to the kidnapping it relates to someone impersonating the kidnapper.

Who he is: Derrick Callella, 42, from the Los Angeles area.
What he did: Court records indicate he texted Nancy’s daughter Annie Guthrie and son-in-law Tommaso Cioni on February 4, shortly after the family had publicly appealed for her safe return.
Charges: Two federal counts sending a ransom demand across state lines and harassment via a telecommunications device.
Plea: He pleaded guilty on July 2, 2026.
Sentencing: Scheduled for September 10, 2026, before U.S. District Judge John C. Hinderaker.
Recent development: On July 8, a judge modified his release conditions, ordering him into inpatient substance-abuse treatment ahead of sentencing after he tested positive for drugs.

Investigators have been clear that Callella is not believed to be connected to Nancy’s actual disappearance; he is accused only of exploiting the situation to harass her family.

What the FBI Has Said

The FBI’s public messaging has been one of the more debated parts of this story. Key points from official FBI Phoenix statements:

The case continues to be investigated as a kidnapping-for-ransom case.
The bureau has received multiple ransom notes over the course of the investigation.
Some notes are considered fraudulent extortion attempts; others remain under active evaluation.
The FBI has not publicly named a suspect.
Mixed DNA evidence recovered from the scene is still being processed, a process officials describe as slow-moving because of lab backlogs and the complexity of biological evidence.

What Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos Has Said

Sheriff Nanos has given several interviews over the course of the investigation, most recently around July 1, 2026. In that conversation with a local Tucson news station, he described a joint task force of roughly 10 to 15 sheriff’s department personnel working alongside dedicated FBI resources, meeting regularly to review new leads, lab results, and video evidence.

He acknowledged that some case details are being withheld from the public, not out of secrecy for its own sake, but to protect the integrity of the investigation. He also expressed continued confidence that an arrest will eventually be made, while acknowledging the slow pace of DNA and digital forensic work.

Savannah Guthrie’s Public Statements

Savannah Guthrie stepped back from some of her “Today” show duties, including coverage of the 2026 Winter Olympics, in the early weeks after her mother’s disappearance, before returning to the anchor desk on April 6, 2026. She has continued to make periodic on-air and written appeals for information.

Around the five-month mark of the case, in a statement shared with a Tucson news outlet on July 1, she described the ongoing toll on her family, emphasizing that they are still actively trying to find her mother. She has also said publicly that she is not involved in her network’s editorial coverage of the story, given her personal connection to it.

Theories And Expert Opinions On The Case

A range of retired law enforcement figures and criminologists have weighed in publicly:

Steve Moore (retired FBI agent): Suggested internal disagreement within the FBI over how to classify certain evidence, and raised the possibility that blood evidence found at the scene may indicate Nancy did not survive long enough for an actual ransom exchange to occur.
Sheryl McCollum (crime scene investigator): Criticized the overall handling of the investigation, pointing to a lack of unified public messaging between the FBI, the sheriff’s department, and the family.
Harry Trombitas (former FBI agent): Suggested that selective release of case details, like the timing of the second note’s contents becoming public, is sometimes a deliberate tactic to reignite public interest when leads slow down.
Harvey Levin (TMZ): Mentioned during a podcast appearance that an FBI source once raised the possibility that a member of the media may have planted evidence early in the investigation a claim other commentators have since pushed back on.

It’s worth noting that all of these are individual opinions from commentators and former officials, not confirmed findings from the FBI or Pima County Sheriff’s Department.

Reward Information And How To Submit A Tip

Detail	Information
Total combined reward	Approximately $1.2 million
FBI tip line	1-800-CALL-FBI (1-800-225-5324)
FBI online tips	tips.fbi.gov
Pima County Sheriff’s Department	520-351-4900
88-CRIME anonymous tip line	520-882-7463

Anyone with information, no matter how minor it may seem, is encouraged to contact investigators directly rather than share it only on social media, since unverified claims have already led to confusion in this case (including an earlier false report involving gloves found near the home that turned out to belong to a restaurant worker).

Guthrie Case Update Comparison Table

Search Term	What People Are Actually Looking For
Nancy Guthrie case update	General latest news on the disappearance
Savannah Guthrie case update	Clarifying that Savannah is the daughter, not the missing person
Annie Guthrie case update	Interest in Nancy’s daughter and her role in early reporting
Guthrie case update reddit	Community discussion and amateur theories
Guthrie case update son in law	Interest in Tommaso Cioni, who dropped Nancy off the night she vanished
Pima County Sheriff Nancy Guthrie case update	Official law enforcement statements
3 detained in Guthrie case update	Refers to earlier, now-cleared persons of interest questioned during the investigation

Key Takeaways

Nancy Guthrie, 84, has been missing since January 31–February 1, 2026, from her home near Tucson, Arizona.
The FBI is investigating the case as a kidnapping for ransom, though it has said several ransom notes were not genuine.
One man, Derrick Callella, pleaded guilty to sending fake ransom messages but is not accused of the abduction itself.
No suspect has been named in the disappearance as of this update.
DNA evidence from the scene is still being processed.
A combined reward of roughly $1.2 million remains active for information leading to her recovery.
Savannah Guthrie has returned to the “Today” show and continues to make public appeals.

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Frequently Asked Questions

What is the latest update on the Nancy Guthrie case?

As of early July 2026, the case remains unsolved. The FBI confirmed receiving multiple ransom notes, determined some were fraudulent, and continues evaluating others. One man pleaded guilty to sending fake ransom messages, but no one has been charged in connection with Nancy’s actual disappearance.

Who is Nancy Guthrie?

Nancy Guthrie is an 84-year-old woman from the Tucson, Arizona area and the mother of “Today” show co-anchor Savannah Guthrie. She went missing from her home on January 31 or February 1, 2026.

Is Nancy Guthrie the same person as Savannah Guthrie?

No. Savannah Guthrie is Nancy’s daughter and a well-known NBC news anchor. Nancy is the missing person at the center of the investigation.

Has Nancy Guthrie been found?

No, as of this update Nancy Guthrie has not been found, and investigators have not confirmed whether she is alive.

Who is Annie Guthrie in the case?

Annie Guthrie is Nancy’s daughter and one of the family members who received the fake ransom text messages sent by Derrick Callella in early February 2026.

Was anyone arrested in the Nancy Guthrie case?

Yes, but not for the kidnapping itself. Derrick Callella, 42, pleaded guilty to two federal counts for sending fake ransom demands to the family. He is scheduled to be sentenced on September 10, 2026. No one has been charged with the actual abduction.

What did the ransom notes say?

Reports describe at least three notes: one demanding several million dollars in bitcoin, a second claiming Nancy had died shortly after being taken, and a third claiming to know the identity of the abductor. The FBI has said it does not believe these notes are genuine, though it continues evaluating some of them.

What has the Pima County Sheriff said about the case?

Sheriff Chris Nanos has said the investigation remains active, that a joint task force with the FBI meets regularly, and that some information is being withheld deliberately to protect the case rather than to hide progress.

How much is the reward for information in the Nancy Guthrie case?

The combined reward offered by the family and investigators is approximately $1.2 million for information leading to Nancy Guthrie’s recovery.

How can someone submit a tip in the Nancy Guthrie case?

Tips can be submitted to the FBI at 1-800-CALL-FBI or online at tips.fbi.gov, or to the Pima County Sheriff’s Department at 520-351-4900.

Is the Nancy Guthrie case still being investigated as a kidnapping?

Yes. Despite doubts raised about the authenticity of the ransom notes, the FBI has stated the case continues to be investigated as a kidnapping-for-ransom case.

Why did Savannah Guthrie step away from the Today show?

Savannah Guthrie temporarily stepped back from some anchoring duties, including coverage of the 2026 Winter Olympics, in the weeks following her mother’s disappearance before returning to the desk on April 6, 2026.

Conclusion

The Nancy Guthrie case remains one of the most closely followed missing-person investigations of 2026, largely because of the shifting, sometimes contradictory information around the ransom notes and the personal toll it has taken on Savannah Guthrie and her family.

As of this update, the core facts are unchanged: Nancy Guthrie is still missing, no suspect has been publicly identified in her disappearance, and the FBI and Pima County Sheriff’s Department continue working the case jointly while DNA and digital evidence are processed.

The only resolved piece so far is the guilty plea from Derrick Callella, whose actions are considered separate from the kidnapping itself. Anyone with genuine information is encouraged to contact the FBI or Pima County Sheriff’s Department directly.