Savannah Guthrie Reflects on Her Mother’s Abduction and Addresses Fame’s Role: “If It’s Me, I’m So Sorry”
Savannah Guthrie made a heartfelt appeal for information regarding her mother, Nancy Guthrie, during her first interview since the disappearance. Speaking to Hoda Kotb on NBC’s Today, Savannah emphasized, “we cannot be at peace without knowing.”
“Someone can do the right thing, and it is never too late to do the right thing, and our hearts are focused on that,” she added.
Nancy Guthrie was last seen on January 31, when a friend dropped her off at her Tucson home. She was reported missing the following day. Investigators have identified surveillance footage of a masked individual at her front door, but no suspects have emerged in the case. In an effort to encourage leads, the Guthrie family is offering a $1 million reward for information regarding her whereabouts. NBC’s Today has featured the tip line, 1-800-CALL-FBI.
In an emotional interview that aired Thursday, Savannah recounted the turmoil of that weekend when her sister informed her of their mother’s disappearance.
Guthrie recalled their initial thoughts, stating, “We thought that she must have had some kind of medical episode in the night…but her phone was there and her purse was there and all her things, and it just didn’t make any sense.”
Upon arriving in Tucson, she and her family quickly dismissed the possibility that their 84-year-old mother had simply wandered off. Guthrie described distressing signs: propped open doors, blood on the front doorstep, and a Ring camera that had been forcibly removed. “We were saying, ‘Do something. This is not OK. Something is very wrong here,’” she recalled.
Discussions with her brother, a military veteran who works in intelligence, provided further insight. “He said, ‘I think she’s been kidnapped for ransom.’ I said, ‘What? Why? I just didn’t want to believe,” Guthrie continued, expressing her disbelief at the suggestion.
Throughout the interview, Guthrie grappled with feelings of guilt. “I mean, we still don’t know. Honestly, we don’t know anything…that would make sense, but we don’t know,” she lamented.
Her emotions were palpable as she said, “It’s too much to bear to think that I brought this to her bedside…I’m so sorry. If it is me, I’m so sorry.”
Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos has indicated that investigators believe Nancy was specifically targeted, though he noted they are “not 100% sure of that,” according to NBC News. The FBI is also offering a $100,000 reward for information leading to her return.
Savannah discussed suspected ransom notes, stating investigators “tend to believe” that two letters were legitimate, while others were deemed fake. “A person that would send a fake ransom note really has to look deeply at themselves,” she expressed.
The video capturing the individual at her mother’s home left her shaken. “I can’t imagine that is who she saw standing over her bed,” Guthrie said. “I’m glad and grateful to the investigators and the technology companies that were able to find that video.”
Guthrie criticized speculation regarding potential family involvement, highlighting the pain such theories can inflict. “It was unbearable and it piles pain upon pain…no one took better care of my mom than my sister and brother-in-law, and no one protected my mom more than my brother,” she asserted.
