Authorities involved in Nancy Guthrie‘s investigation said they “won’t quit,” while noting the investigation could be lengthy.
The Pima County Sheriff, Chris Nanos, shared the news in an interview with The New York Times on Friday, February 13, stating, “Maybe it’s an hour from now. Maybe it’s weeks or months or years from now. But we won’t quit. We’re going to find [Nancy Guthrie]. We’re going to find this guy.”
LATEST UPDATES: Pima County sheriff says ‘exhausting’ search for Guthrie could take hours to years: report
— Fox News (@FoxNews) February 14, 2026
For those unversed, Nancy was last seen on January 31, when she travelled via Uber to her daughter Annie’s house, and was later dropped off at her Arizona home by her son-in-law, Tommaso Sioni.
The subsequent day, Guthrie’s family went to her house and later reported her missing to authorities.
“We get these calls quite often, and we do a good job of searching the area. But, this one stood out because of what was described to us at the scene and what we found and located just in looking at the scene,” said Nanos in a press conference regarding the 911 call they received from Nancy Guthrie’s family on February 1.
Meanwhile, Nanos’ interview with The New York Time came as the search for Nancy Guthrie continues, and authorities recently detained three individuals.
For context, on Friday night, a man was detained during a traffic stop outside the Culver’s restaurant. At the same time, two more individuals, identified as mother and son, were also detained from their home, located two miles away from Nancy Guthrie’s Arizona home.
Describing the incident, David Curl, the detained individual’s neighbour, in an interview with the outlet said, “She had no idea what they were asking about. She had no information about the disappearance or any idea why they were focusing on their house.”
According to Curl, the “distraught” woman stayed at his home overnight while the FBI searched her residence. The following day, Nanos confirmed that no arrests were made and all three individuals were released. The Sheriff also revealed that the man stopped at a traffic stop was the investigators’ “person of interest.”
He also advised the public to expect “a lot of police activity” in the area.
“These leads start in the command post and move to the field as needed. That is one reason you’re seeing activity build up as the day goes on that can ultimately lead to a search warrant looking for Nancy and any suspect involved. Not all leads will rise to that level but some may. It all depends on what is developed from each lead…” said Nanos.
Previously, on February 10, the Pima County Sheriff’s Department deputies also detained a Rio Rico man identified as Carlos Palazuelos and later released him after hours of questioning.
Following his release, he spoke to reporters regarding his detention, alleging that the authorities “held me against my will.”
This is Carlos who says he was pulled over by police and was accused of kidnapping #NancyGuthrie.
They have released him.
We just spoke with him outside his house in Rio Rico Arizona
@CBSNews pic.twitter.com/BmsR2q5jBl
— Andres Gutierrez (@AFGutierrez) February 11, 2026
Showing his wrists to reporters, apparently swollen from the handcuffs, Carlos added that he had no knowledge of Nancy Guthrie.
“I didn’t do anything. I hope they get the suspect, because I’m not it. I hope they get the suspect so I can clear my name,” he added.
