The sudden disappearance of Today show co-host Savannah Guthrie’s mother, Nancy Guthrie, has shaken the nation with fear and uncertainty.
On Feb 16, the FBI said they would use a national DNA database called CODIS to check the DNA found in a pair of gloves near Nancy’s house. Yet, CNN reports confirm that no DNA matched the ones found in the database.
The FBI manages CODIS and contains profiles of over 19 million offenders. The Pima County Sheriff said that even though the DNA records did not match, the gloves could still belong to the suspect involved in the case.
The Sheriff who spoke to CNN also said that a slight fold seen on top of the gloves could be the suspect’s ring. While further investigation would provide better clarity, according to the BBC, police are working with Walmart to trace the purchase of the backpack seen in the surveillance footage.
The FBI announced Sunday that the glove was found in a roadside field roughly three kilometers from her residence. In total, investigators collected about 16 gloves from areas surrounding the home. Some of these were later discarded by volunteers participating in search efforts.
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Following forensic analysis, the Federal Bureau of Investigation estimates the suspect is between 5 feet 9 inches and 5 feet 10 inches tall (175–177 cm) with an average build. According to a YouTube video by NBC News, Nancy Guthrie lived in a very safe neighborhood in Arizona. Still, it was not a typical suburb where houses were positioned close together.
A large search involving both the Pima County Sheriff’s Department and the FBI is ongoing, with investigators carefully searching her home and nearby areas.
On Feb. 11, the Pima County Sheriff’s Department released surveillance photos and videos of a potential suspect covered from head to toe in connection with the case. Authorities reportedly recovered the footage from “residual data located in backend systems.”
A man identified as Carlos Palazuelos from Arizona was searched and taken into custody but was later released. A pair of gloves was discovered about two miles from Guthrie’s home and appeared similar to one worn by a suspect captured in doorbell camera footage the night Nancy Guthrie vanished.
Neighbors described the area as quiet and private, with residents living peacefully. The neighborhood reportedly becomes very dark after sunset, making it difficult to determine whether nearby neighbors heard anything before Nancy Guthrie vanished.
Nancy Guthrie was last seen late Saturday night, Jan. 31, when she arrived home in Tucson at approximately 9:48 p.m., according to Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos.
Investigators believe she went inside for the night and disappeared sometime between then and early Sunday morning, Feb. 1. Members of her church in Arizona noticed she was missing and informed her children.
Savannah and her siblings were searching for her when the FBI announced a reward of up to $50,000 for information leading to her whereabouts.
The Guthrie family also received ransom messages from an unknown individual. Savannah Guthrie and her siblings later released a social media video asking the person responsible whether Nancy Guthrie was alive and well.
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However, there has been no response from the person or people responsible for these threats. The findings in the case have not led to any strong clues yet, and this makes the disappearance of the 84-year-old woman even more frightening.
Strangely, the police have not been able to find a clear reason for her disappearance, even after two weeks of continuous searching.
