All the family members of 84-year-old Nancy Guthrie have been cleared as suspects in the case of her disappearance.
The Pima County Sheriff’s Department emphasized the innocence of the siblings and their spouses in a statement released Monday, pleading with the media and public to leave the beleaguered family alone.
“To be clear … the Guthrie family — to include all siblings and spouses — has been cleared as possible suspects in this case,” Sheriff Chris Nanos said. “The family has been nothing but cooperative and gracious and are victims in this case.”
“To suggest otherwise is not only wrong, it is cruel. The Guthrie family are victims plain and simple,” Nanos said. “Please, I’m begging you, the media, to honor your profession and report with some sense of compassion and professionalism.”
Nancy Guthrie, the mother of Today show cohost Savannah Guthrie, disappeared from her house over two weeks ago. No explicit demands were left at the scene of the crime, but the crime is believed to have been a kidnapping.
A doorbell camera at the home captured footage of a masked man approaching the entrance.
The widespread interest in the Guthrie case has spawned endless speculation and conspiracy theories in the press and on social media.
These theories have frequently alleged involvement by one of the Guthrie family members or their spouses, who have been the most public individuals in the case — releasing videos pleading for Nancy’s return. No evidence has emerged linking any of the family members to the case.
Authorities working on the case are currently examining Walmart sales records for possible leads on the culprit due to the backpack and clothing he was seen wearing on the doorbell camera of Nancy’s home. Those items are believed to have been purchased from the retail chain.
Separately, a glove was found in a field near Guthrie’s home that “appears” to match the gloves worn by the suspect caught on the doorbell camera. Police are analyzing the glove for DNA evidence, hoping it can provide a lead on the case.
The spectacle surrounding the case has only been exacerbated by a flurry of anonymous notes to media organizations, variously claiming to know Guthrie’s location, demanding payment for her safe return, or even alleging to be the kidnappers themselves.
TMZ chief Harvey Levin is pleading with an individual who has sent multiple notes to news outlets claiming to know Nancy Guthrie’s whereabouts.
In the latest note, the unidentified man claimed he “saw Nancy” with the kidnappers and was told to “shut up,” alleging that the missing woman is in Mexico.
