A timeline of Nancy Guthrie's disappearance as search stretches on

Updated on: March 27, 2026 / 8:25 AM EDT / CBS News
As the search for Nancy Guthrie, the 84-year-old mother of "Today" show co-host Savannah Guthrie , stretches on, investigators are still seeking tips that could help break the case and lead to her return.

Savannah Guthrie and her two siblings have appealed directly to whoever may have taken their mother.

The FBI said it was taking two emails seriously, including what appeared to be a ransom note with a demand for payment in bitcoin.

Here is a timeline of Nancy Guthrie's disappearance and the investigation.

Jan.

31: Nancy Guthrie last seen
Guthrie's pacemaker app showed a disconnect from her phone at 2:28 a.m.

On Sunday morning, a friend called Guthrie's family, telling them she had not shown up for church.

They notified the sheriff's department around noon that day, minutes after checking in on her.

Guthrie has limited mobility and relies on daily medication for her health, officials have said.

That prompted an urgent search for her to begin.

Feb.

2: Sheriff says "I believe she was abducted"
He told CBS News he believed Guthrie was "abducted" in the middle of the night.

"I believe she was abducted, yes," Nanos said.

"She didn't walk from there.

She didn't go willingly."
A missing person's flier from the sheriff's department described her as 5 feet, 5 inches tall, with brown hair and blue eyes and weighing 150 pounds.

Feb.

3: Ransom note and blood at scene
On Tuesday, authorities said they were analyzing an apparent ransom note with details about what the 84-year-old was wearing on the night of the crime.

The note demanded payment in bitcoin .

"We are aware of reports circulating about possible ransom note(s) regarding the investigation into Nancy Guthrie," Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos said in a social media statement .

"We are taking all tips and leads very seriously.

Anything that comes in, goes directly to our detectives who are coordinating with the FBI."
They were also looking at what appeared to be drops of blood outside the front door.

A law enforcement source also told CBS News some was also found inside the house .

"Nothing has come up that says, 'Here he is, here's your bad guy,'" Nanos told CBS News on Tuesday.

Feb.

4: Video appeal from Savannah Guthrie
Authorities said Wednesday morning that investigators still had not identified a suspect or person of interest in the case.

"Detectives continue to speak with anyone who may have had contact with Mrs.

Guthrie," the Pima County Sheriff's Department said on social media.

Meanwhile, Savannah Guthrie released an emotional video pleading for her mother's return and saying her family is "ready to talk."
"We live in a world where voices and images are easily manipulated.

We need to know without a doubt that she is alive and that you have her," Savannah Guthrie said in the video with her two siblings, addressing a possible captor or captors.

"We want to hear from you, and we are ready to listen.

Please, reach out to us."
Savannah Guthrie said her mother's health and heart are fragile.

"She lives in constant pain.

She is without any medicine.

She needs it to survive.

She needs it not to suffer," Savannah Guthrie said.

She also addressed her mom directly, saying: "Mommy, if you are hearing this, you are a strong woman.

You are God's precious daughter, Nancy.

We believe and know that even in this valley, He is with you.

Everyone is looking for you, mommy, everywhere.

We will not rest, your children will not rest, until we are together again."
Around the same time that video was released, President Trump said on social media that he spoke with Savannah Guthrie "and let her know that I am directing ALL Federal Law Enforcement to be at the family's, and Local Law Enforcement's, complete disposal, IMMEDIATELY."
Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos said at a news conference Thursday, "We believe Nancy is still out there." He also said that as of late morning local time, authorities had not identified a suspect or a person of interest.

A ransom note that investigators said they're taking seriously included a deadline of 5 p.m.

Thursday, Heith Janke, the special agent in charge of the FBI's field office in Phoenix, said at the news conference.

"If a transfer wasn't made, then I think a second demand was for next Monday," Janke said.

He wouldn't provide details about what the note said would happen if the demands weren't met.

Separately, an alleged impostor was arrested for making a phony ransom demand in the case, Janke said.

Authorities are continuing to ask for the public's help and urging anyone with possible information to contact them.

The FBI announced a $50,000 reward for information leading to Nancy Guthrie's recovery or the arrest and conviction of people involved in her disappearance.

"It only takes one tip, just one, to break the case open, to offer that lead that we so desperately need in this case," chief of detectives for the Pima County Attorney's Office, Fabian Pacheco, who oversees one of the tip lines, told CBS News in an interview that aired on "CBS Mornings" Thursday.

He said about 10% of leads have value.

Anyone with information is being urged to call (520)-882-7463.

In a video posted to Savannah Guthrie's Instagram account on Thursday night, her brother Camron Guthrie made another appeal for the return of their mother.

"Whoever is out there holding our mother, we want to hear from you," Camron Guthrie said.

"We haven't heard anything directly.

We need you to reach out, and we need a way to communicate with you so we can move forward.

But first, we have to know that you have our mom.

We want to talk to you, and we are waiting for contact."
Feb.

6: Authorities say they're "aware of a new message"
A second message was sent to CBS News' Tucson affiliate KOLD on Friday.

The station said it would not release details about its contents, citing respect for the family and the investigation.

Local and federal authorities said they're " aware of a new message " regarding Nancy Guthrie's disappearance.

"Investigators are actively inspecting the information provided in the message for its authenticity," the Pima County Sheriff's Department said in a post on social media.

The FBI also posted a similar statement on social media.

It's unclear what kind of message it is.

Feb.

7: Savannah Guthrie says "we will pay" for Nancy's safe return
Savannah Guthrie and her two siblings posted a new video to social media Saturday that appeared to be directed at the alleged abductor or abductors, in which she acknowledged having "received a message," and said that the Guthrie family would be willing to pay to see the safe return of Nancy Guthrie.

"We received your message and we understand," Guthrie said in the short video, appearing alongside her siblings Annie and Camron Guthrie.

"We beg you now to return our mother to us so that we can celebrate with her.

This is the only way we will have peace.

This is very valuable to us and we will pay."
An FBI spokesman said Savannah Guthrie was referring to the message sent to KOLD the day before, The Associated Press reported.

Two law enforcement sources told CBS News on Saturday that investigators were "developing good information" but that "nothing is imminent."
Feb.

8: Detectives back at the scene
Feb.

9: Savannah Guthrie pleads for public's help
A second ransom deadline was looming Monday as the search for Nancy Guthrie entered its second week.

CBS News has learned investigators are canvassing nearby gas stations in an effort to track down any suspicious vehicles captured on surveillance cameras around the time Nancy Guthrie went missing.

On Monday afternoon, Savannah Guthrie issued a plea for the public's assistance , saying the family is "at an hour of desperation and we need your help."
The FBI reiterated that the agency has not identified a suspect or person of interest in the case so far.

Anyone with possible information on Nancy Guthrie's disappearance is asked to call 520-882-7463.

Feb.

10: Surveillance images released; person detained hours later
FBI Director Kash PateI and the Pima County Sheriff's Department in Arizona posted surveillance images and video of a subject in Nancy Guthrie's disappearance, showing a masked person wearing a backpack and gloves at her door.

The images show an armed individual appearing to tamper with the camera at her front door on the morning Guthrie went missing.

A 27-second video shows the person approaching the front door and raising a gloved hand to the camera before walking away.

A 14-second video shows the person facing the camera and holding a flashlight in their mouth before covering the camera lens with some vegetation.

Two law enforcement sources told CBS News the man in the images is considered a subject that they were seeking to identify.

Hours later, the Pima County Sheriff's Department said a subject had been detained during a traffic stop south of Tucson and was being questioned in connection with Nancy Guthrie's disappearance.

The person was taken into custody following a traffic stop in Rio Rico, Arizona, a small community located just north of the Mexican border, two sources familiar with the investigation told CBS News.

Pima County Sheriff's investigators, with the assistance of the FBI, were searching the Rio Rico residence of the person of interest, the sources said.

The sheriff's department did not specify if the person detained was the same person seen in the videos.

Feb.

11: "I didn't do anything," man says
"I didn't do anything.

...

I'm innocent," he said.

Authorities haven't confirmed Carlos was the person of interest or that the person of interest has been released.

Meanwhile, a woman in Rio Rico, Josefina Maddox, told reporters her son-in-law was the person of interest but had "nothing to do with it." There was no confirmation of her assertions.

Angelica Carrillo, a spokesperson for the Pima County Sheriff's Department, told CBS News early Wednesday that Nancy Guthrie still hasn't been found.

Feb.

12: FBI releases first description of suspect, investigating gloves
Authorities released the first physical description of a male suspect wanted in connection with Nancy Guthrie's disappearance.

The suspect is described as having an average build and an approximate height of 5-foot-9 or 5-foot-10, the FBI said .

The FBI said it also doubled its reward to $100,000 for information leading to either the location of Nancy Guthrie, and/or the arrest and conviction of anyone involved in her disappearance.

Earlier, a pair of black gloves was found as investigators continued their search of the area, sources close to the investigation confirmed to CBS News.

The gloves will be tested for DNA.

Feb.

13: Second residence searched
Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos told CBS affiliate KOLD that the activity was the result of following up on "a lead that led to a search warrant and no arrest."
Nanos told KOLD that a traffic stop was made on a person of interest and that the individual was cooperative and later released.

Feb.

15: Glove found appears to match video, contains DNA
The FBI said it received preliminary results of DNA testing on Saturday, and it is waiting on confirmation Son unday before putting what it called "the unknown male profile" into CoDIS, the FBI's national database for matching DNA profiles — a process it said usually takes about 24 hours.

It was one of approximately 16 gloves collected by investigators in various areas near the house, but most of those gloves belonged to searchers who discarded them while working the area, according to the FBI.

"The one with the DNA profile recovered is different and appears to match the gloves of the subject in the surveillance video," the FBI said in a statement.

Feb.

16: Clues from mask and clothing; "signal sniffer" deployed; Guthries cleared as suspects
All members of the Guthrie family and their spouses have been cleared as suspects in Nancy Guthrie's disappearance, Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos said.

"The family has been nothing but cooperative and gracious and are victims in this case," he said, and suggesting otherwise "is not only wrong, it is cruel."
Walmart sells a mask that looks very similar to the mask worn by the man in the doorbell camera video.

It is believed to be black, but it looks lighter in the footage because of the Nest camera's infrared technology, according to Nanos.

The FBI previously said the suspect was also carrying a black, 25-liter Ozark Trail Hiker Pack backpack in the video.

CBS News first reported that the backpack is sold exclusively at Walmart.

Nanos called the backpack "one of the most promising leads" in the case.

Investigators have been reviewing surveillance video footage from local Walmart locations, Nanos said.

The company has provided authorities with records of all Ozark Trail Hiker purchases from the past several months, according to the sheriff.

A spokesperson for Walmart declined to comment.

Investigators have also deployed a device that could detect signals emitted from Nancy Guthrie's pacemaker, law enforcement sources told CBS News.

The high-tech tracking tool, called a "signal sniffer," has been mounted on a helicopter and may help detectives pinpoint her location, the sources said.

Signal sniffers are often used in missing person cases because they can detect low-power electronic signals, such as those emitted by a pacemaker.

Feb.

17: No DNA match from gloves
The profile was submitted to the database known as CoDIS, or Combined DNA Index System.

The sheriff's department said in a statement that there have been no confirmed CoDIS matches in the investigation at this point.

The DNA database could have provided a match if the individual had a previous arrest for certain crimes and supplied a DNA sample that put him into the system.

CBS News also learned that the FBI is probing gun purchases in the Tucson area.

According to the owner of an area gun store, an agent came in about a week or so earlier and showed him several images with faces and names on them.

Agents inquired about purchases in the last year.

The owner said there were several names and images on the sheets, but doesn't remember a specific number of people listed.

CBS News agreed not to name the store owner due to privacy concerns.

Feb.

18: Investigators not ruling out possibility of accomplice
In Mexico, the nonprofit Madres Buscadoras de Sonora , which helps locate missing people in the northwestern state that borders Arizona, said it had been contacted by a family member of Nancy Guthrie, who asked the organization to help in the search.

The country's federal security agency and the prosecutor's office and public security agency in Sonora told CBS News they have not been contacted to assist in the investigation.

Feb.

19: No indication Nancy Guthrie is in Mexico
Law enforcement sources told CBS News that the FBI has been in touch with the Mexican government and Mexican law enforcement regarding the disappearance of Nancy Guthrie; however, officials said they have no evidence to suggest she is there.

Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos said there was no indication Guthrie was taken into Mexico, but noted that doesn't necessarily mean that an investigation in the area has not been launched.

Attorney General of the State of Sonora Gustavo Rómulo Salas Chávez said Thursday, "We have no information to suggest that this person is in Mexican territory, specifically in Sonora."
Carlos Flores, the commissioner general of Mexico's Criminal Investigation Agency, said Thursday, "The FBI informed us that they currently have no leads to suggest that this person could be in Mexico."
Feb.

23: Suspect had been to the house before the night of Guthrie's disappearance, source says
The masked suspect seen in the doorbell camera video appears to have been at Nany Guthri's front door earlier than Feb.

1 , the night police believe she was kidnapped, a law enforcement source confirmed to CBS News.

One of the images the FBI released of the suspect outside the 84-year-old's front door shows him without a backpack.

That image was captured by Guthrie's Nest doorbell camera sometime prior to the date of the suspected abduction.

It was unclear how many days before Feb.

1 the video of the man without a backpack may have been taken.

The Pima County Sheriff's Office said in a statement, "There is no date or time stamp associated with these images.

Therefore, any suggestion that the photographs were taken on different days is purely speculative."
Feb.

24: Family offers additional $1 million reward
Savannah Guthrie announced that the family is offering an additional reward of up to $1 million for any information leading to Nancy Guthrie's whereabouts.

In a video posted to Instagram , she said they "still believe in a miracle" and hold out hope their mother will be found, but also acknowledged that she "may be lost."
Feb.

26: FBI moves command post in investigation from Tucson to Phoenix, source says
The FBI is moving its command post in the Nancy Guthrie investigation from Tucson, Arizona, to Phoenix, a law enforcement source familiar with the investigation told CBS News.

The transition is being done because the large Phoenix command post will be able to operate more efficiently for the long term and most of the agents who have been working on the investigation in Tucson are based in Phoenix, the source said.

The investigative squads, evidence recovery teams and SWAT teams will all remain in Tucson as they are assigned to the FBI's Tucson office, which is a large satellite office.

The investigation is still running at full speed, the source said.

March 25: Savannah Guthrie gives first interview since mom vanished, says family is in agony
Savannah Guthrie made a tearful plea for someone "to do the right thing" in her first interview about her mom's disappearance.

"We are in agony.

We are in agony," an emotional Guthrie told her former "Today" show co-host Hoda Kotb in a clip of the interview.

"It is unbearable, and to think of what she went through, I wake up every night in the middle of the night, every night, and in the darkness, I imagine her terror, and it is unthinkable, but those thoughts demand to be thought."
The Guthrie family has urged people in southern Arizona to review camera footage, journal notes and text messages for any possible leads in the case.

In the interview, Savannah Guthrie renewed her plea for anyone with information about her mom to step forward.

March 27: Savannah Guthrie says she plans to return to "Today" show
Savannah Guthrie said in her interview with "Today" show co-host Hoda Kotb that she plans to return to the show "because it's my family."
"It's hard to imagine doing it because it's such a place of joy and lightness and I can't come back and try to be something that I'm not," she said.

"But I can't not come back, because it's my family.

I think it's part of my purpose right now."
After the interview, Kotb announced that Guthrie will be back at the anchor desk starting Monday, April 6.

Kiki Intarasuwan , Pat Milton , Alex Sundby and Brian Dakss contributed to this report.