The Pima County Sheriff’s Department has issued a fresh statement on the nearly nine-month-old Nancy Guthrie kidnapping case, revealing new efforts to advance DNA analysis.
Sheriff Chris Nanos disclosed on X Friday night that investigators traveled to Florida earlier this month to consult directly with laboratory scientists about pushing the case forward. “The Nancy Guthrie Task Force continues to work with our labs in hopes of furthering our DNA analysis in this investigation,” Nanos said in his statement.
“Earlier this month, investigators traveled to Florida to meet with lab scientists to see what more could be done to advance this case,” he added.
The sheriff emphasized ongoing collaboration without promising immediate breakthroughs. “A number of ideas were discussed, and we continue to work with all our partners to solve this case,” Nanos continued.
He closed with a direct appeal to the public for any information, however minor it might seem. “No tip is too small. Even the smallest piece of information could be critical to this investigation,” he stated.
The DNA-focused update follows a brief flurry of attention last month around a potential ransom communication. On Sept. 28, the department’s joint task force with the FBI announced on X that it had been “recently made aware of a new possible ransom note related to the Nancy Guthrie investigation.” The same statement acknowledged social media chatter about the note and confirmed investigators were examining its credibility.
That lead collapsed quickly. Authorities issued a follow-up statement the next day declaring the “possible ransom text message” was “not credible.”
Nancy, 84, vanished from her Tucson, Arizona, home on Feb. 1, prompting a kidnapping investigation that has now stretched across three seasons without an arrest. The FBI released disturbing home security images shortly after her disappearance showing an armed, masked individual standing at her door on the night she went missing.
The case has generated repeated ransom-related developments that have so far failed to produce resolution. Multiple ransom notes have surfaced during the investigation, though none have led to identified suspects or confirmed demands.
In June, a former FBI agent publicly claimed investigators were narrowing in on the masked man from the door camera footage. No arrest followed that assessment, and the sheriff’s department has not since named any person of interest or suspect in custody.
Savannah, 54, the Today co-anchor and Nancy’s daughter, resumed her on-air duties in April despite her mother’s continued absence. She has not made a public statement in response to Friday’s update from Sheriff Nanos.
The task force’s travel to Florida for laboratory consultation represents one of the more concrete operational details disclosed publicly in months, shifting focus back to forensic evidence rather than the string of ransom communications that have periodically redirected attention.