Nancy Guthrie case Highlights: FBI agents search 84-year-old's house, backyard

The Pima County Sheriff’s Department said the investigation is widening geographically, with several hundred detectives and agents now assigned to the case, reported AP.

In a nearby neighbourhood, two investigators were seen leaving the home of Annie Guthrie, the victim’s daughter, carrying a paper grocery bag and a white trash bag. One of the investigators, still wearing blue protective gloves, also retrieved a bundle of mail from the mailbox by the road.

FBI agents on Wednesday afternoon local time searched near Nancy Guthrie’s Tucson-area house, reports by AP and CNN said.

Authorities told a CNN crew at the scene that agents were searching the land along the road where Guthrie’s home is located.

A Tucson-area delivery driver who was briefly detained in connection with the kidnapping of Nancy Guthrie has denied any involvement, insisting he had never heard of the missing 84-year-old or her daughter, “Today” show co-host Savannah Guthrie.

Carlos Palazuelos was questioned and later released late Tuesday, just hours after the FBI released surveillance images and video of a masked suspect outside Nancy Guthrie’s home.

A Tucson-area delivery driver who was briefly detained in connection with the kidnapping of Nancy Guthrie has denied any involvement, insisting he had never heard of the missing 84-year-old or her daughter, “Today” show co-host Savannah Guthrie.

Carlos Palazuelos was questioned and later released late Tuesday, just hours after the FBI released surveillance images and video of a masked suspect outside Nancy Guthrie’s home.

Palazuelos suggested that investigators may have questioned him after a relative commented on a resemblance between his eyes and those of the masked individual seen in the surveillance footage.

“Until right now, all I know is that they showed my in-law a picture of somebody wearing a mask, or something, and they supposedly looked like my eyes,” the 36-year-old told Fox News.

Palazuelos said he was “shocked” to be detained and maintained he had done nothing wrong.

“I didn't do anything. … I'm innocent,” he said.

Former FBI agent James Gagliano told Fox News that the remote, unlit streets of Nancy Guthrie’s Catalina Foothills neighborhood may have helped her abductor avoid surveillance

Authorities released footage of a suspect at her Tucson home, but no vehicle has been identified.

Gagliano described the area as the “exact opposite” of Manhattan, with multiple entry and exit routes.

He said the suspect could have used different routes for ingress and egress, reducing the chance of detection.

Some roads are monitored by traffic cameras and license plate readers — but not all exits are covered.

“Is it possible… he would not have been picked up by a license plate reader? The answer is yes,” Gagliano said.

He believes it is unlikely the suspect arrived or left on foot.

However, he noted that lack of fencing between properties could allow movement through secluded backyards.

“Without polluting the investigation, I will say we have made substantial progress in these last 36 to 48 hours, thanks to the technical capabilities of the FBI and our partnerships, and I do believe we are looking at people who, as we say, are persons of interest,” Patel told Fox News on Tuesday night.

“As you know, with any investigation, you’re a person of interest until you’re either eliminated or you’re actually found to be the culprit or the culprits involved, and that’s the stage we’re at right now,” he added.

A new message has emerged in the Nancy Guthrie kidnapping case. TMZ reports receiving a note today.

The sender claims to have insider knowledge and says attempts to contact Camron and Annie Guthrie went unanswered.

The note states: “If they want the name of the individual involved then I want 1 Bitcoin to the following wallet. Time is more than relevant.”

The Bitcoin wallet address included in the message differs from the one in the original ransom demand.

The news outlet said it has forwarded the communication to the FBI.

After the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) on Tuesday said it recovered doorbell camera footage showing an armed individual interfering with a camera at Nancy Guthrie’s front door, social media is convinced that the person is Annie Guthrie's husband, Tommaso Cioni. Read here

Mary Carillo is replacing 'Today' show host Savannah Guthrie, who is missing the Olympics 2026 assignment after her mother went missing. Savannah has been off the air since 2 February as her family searches for answers following her mother’s disappearance.

Nancy Guthrie’s family reported her missing around noon on Sunday, 1 February. She was last seen around 9:30 PM on Saturday, 31 January, after being dropped home by a family member. When she failed to attend church Sunday morning, another churchgoer alerted the family, prompting a welfare check and a 911 call around noon.

FBI Director Kash Patel on Tuesday posted six black-and-white photographs and three videos on social media showing a possible suspect in the Guthrie kidnapping case. Authorities said the images and clips were apparently recorded by Guthrie’s doorbell camera, which was later disabled by the alleged perpetrator.