Erica Stapleton and Steve Gorman
February 5, 2026 — 1:20pm
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Tucson: Popular US morning news anchor Savannah Guthrie has posted a video message addressing anyone who might be holding her missing mother, presumed abducted from her Arizona home this week, pleading for them to open a line of communication.
“We need to know without a doubt that she is alive and that you have her. We want to hear from you and we are ready to listen. Please, reach out to us,” the co-host of NBC’s Today show said in the video message posted to Instagram.
The emotional appeal came three days after Nancy Guthrie, 84, was reported missing from her home near Tucson by family members in what investigators said they believed was an abduction.
It coincided with a two-hour flurry of intense police activity at Nancy Guthrie’s home, where yellow crime-scene tape was strung up around the property for the first time this week and investigators were seen coming and going from the house.
FBI agents are assisting in the investigation.
Savannah Guthrie, 54, who appeared with her brother and sister in the video, said the family had heard media reports of a ransom note, but was taking into account the fact that electronic images could be easily manipulated or faked.
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Nancy Guthrie was last seen on January 31 when she was dropped off at her home by relatives after having dinner with them, and she was reported missing the following day.
Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos has said Guthrie had limited mobility and could not have left her home unassisted, and that her disappearance was being treated by investigators as a kidnapping.
A person familiar with the investigation said investigators found specific evidence in the home showing there was a night-time kidnapping. Several of Guthrie’s personal items, including her cellphone, wallet and car, were still there after she disappeared.
Among other concerns for Guthrie’s wellbeing was that her health was dependent on daily medication, Nanos said.
“Her health, her heart is 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 during the four-minute video.
The TV journalist, who has been co-anchor of Today since 2012, began the Instagram message by thanking supporters for the outpouring of prayers.
“We feel them, and we continue to believe that she feels them too. Our mum is a kind, faithful, loyal, fiercely loving woman of goodness and light. She’s funny, spunky and clever. She has grandchildren that adore her and crowd around her and cover her with kisses. She loves fun and adventure. She is a devoted friend. She is full of kindness and knowledge. Talk to her and you’ll see,” she said.
The motive remains a mystery.
A missing person alert for Nancy Guthrie.AP
Investigators are reviewing surveillance video from nearby homes and working to analyse data from mobile phone towers.
In an update on the case issued earlier in the day, Nanos said investigators had yet to identify any suspect or person of interest in connection with the presumed abduction.
Investigators were aware of reports that some media outlets had received what appeared to be ransom notes, he said, but he did not say whether those were being taken seriously.
TMZ reported on Tuesday that it received a purported ransom note demanding payment in cryptocurrency for Guthrie’s release. Separately, a journalist with Tucson television station KOLD said in an X post that the station received what appeared to be a ransom note. Both outlets said they turned over the notes to investigators.
Reuters, AP
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