A new ransom text message connected to the disappearance of Nancy Guthrie surfaced Monday, and by Tuesday the Pima County Sheriff’s Department had reviewed it and declared it not credible. Guthrie, 84, the mother of “Today” show host Savannah Guthrie, was last seen January 31 at her home in the Catalina Foothills and was reported missing the next day. Investigators believe she was kidnapped or taken against her will. No arrests have been made.
The department has released two ransom notes publicly and says it has received several others. Some were written off as illegitimate extortion attempts. Others are still being investigated as potentially real, which is why officials say they review every reported message for credibility rather than dismissing them out of hand. In August, Derrick Callella, 42, was sentenced to 10 years of probation for sending fake ransom notes to the family in the days after Guthrie vanished.
The family is offering a $1 million reward, with the FBI adding $100,000, for information that leads to her whereabouts. Anyone with information should contact the Pima County Sheriff’s Department or the FBI. Have you ever received a scam message that used a real news event to seem legitimate? Tell us how you caught it.
