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TUCSON, Ariz. – NBC “Today” co-host Savannah Guthrie and her siblings made an emotional public plea on Instagram for their missing mother, Nancy Guthrie, urging anyone who may have abducted the 84-year-old to make contact as Arizona investigators say evidence suggests a crime and reports of a possible ransom demand have surfaced.
Savannah Guthrie opened the family’s plea by thanking supporters for their prayers before describing her mother as the heart of their family and making a direct appeal for contact, stressing Nancy Guthrie’s fragile health and urgent need for medication.
“Our mom is a kind, faithful, loyal, fiercely loving woman of goodness and light,” Savannah Guthrie said. “She’s funny, spunky. She has grandchildren that adore her and crowd around her and cover her with kisses. She loves fun and adventure. She is a devoted friend. She is full of kindness and knowledge. Talk to her and you’ll see.”
“Our mom is our heart and our home. Her health, her heart is fragile,” she continued. “She is without any medicine. She needs it to survive. She needs not to suffer. We, too, have heard the reports about a ransom letter in the media. As a family, we are doing everything that we can.
SAVANNAH GUTHRIE’S MOTHER NANCY POSSIBLY ABDUCTED FROM HER HOME, AUTHORITIES SAY
“We are ready to talk. However, we live in a world where voices and images are easily manipulated,” she added. “We need to know without a doubt that she is alive and that you have her. We want to hear from you, and we are ready to listen. Please reach out to us.”
Annie Guthrie then spoke through tears, appealing directly to her mother and laying bare the family’s desperation as the search continues, saying, “We are always going to be merely human, just normal human people who need our mom. No, no. If you’re listening, we need you to come home. We miss you.”
Investigators in Arizona returned to the home of Savannah Guthrie’s mother on Wednesday afternoon as they continue to aggressively seek tips.
Deputies with the Pima County Sheriff’s Department were seen back at Nancy Guthrie’s home on Wednesday afternoon, putting up yellow crime scene tape. K-9s were also brought to the home, but it’s unclear why law enforcement returned to the home four days after Nancy Guthrie’s disappearance. The Pima County Sheriff’s Department said in a tweet it was “conducting follow-up’ at the home, offering no details.
Several people who appeared to be law enforcement also showed up at Savannah Guthrie’s sister Annie Guthrie’s home on Wednesday. The home is just a few miles from Nancy Guthrie’s home. It’s unclear why they were there, but they brought some equipment inside.
TIMELINE: NBC HOST SAVANNAH GUTHRIE’S MOTHER DISAPPEARS AS SHERIFF SAYS SHE MAY HAVE BEEN ‘ABDUCTED’
Nancy Guthrie, 84, was last seen at her Tucson residence at around 9:30 p.m. Saturday, according to the Pima County Sheriff’s Department. While officials didn’t immediately elaborate on the circumstances of her disappearance, Sheriff Chris Nanos said on Monday that “we do, in fact, have a crime.” A law enforcement source told Fox News Digital that there were “blood drops” leading from the entryway outside down the house’s pathway towards the driveway.
Nanos said Nancy Guthrie didn’t attend her Sunday church service, adding that her family was notified about the absence by a churchgoer. Officials said family members went to Nancy Guthrie’s home at around 11 a.m. and spent some time looking for her. Her family called 911 at around noon. Nancy Guthrie had dinner with her daughter Annie and son-in-law, Tommaso Cioni, on Saturday evening, Nanos told The New York Times. He added that Cioni dropped Nancy Guthrie off at her home afterward and made sure she made it inside.
President Donald Trump spoke with Savannah Guthrie on Wednesday and assured that every resource would be available in the search for her mother, according to NBC. Savanna Guthrie thanked President Trump for calling her family and for the hard work of local and federal law enforcement as they urgently search for her mother.
A Pima County Sheriff’s Office official told Fox News Digital on Monday that officials believe Nancy Guthrie was either kidnapped or abducted.
“Sheriff [Chris] Nanos has stated that he believes that a crime has been committed,” a spokesperson for Pima County Sheriff’s Office told Fox News Digital. “At this point, investigators believe she was taken from the home against her will and that includes possible kidnapping or abduction.”
During the Tuesday news conference, Nanos didn’t have an answer when asked if he knew where Nancy Guthrie was, saying he doesn’t know.
The sheriff declined to answer several questions, including one from a reporter who asked if there was a ransom demanded.
“We are following all leads we have. That’s all I can tell you,” he said. “We’ve got hundreds of leads. And it’s from you that produced those leads by telling people we need help.”
When asked if the apparent abduction was targeted or random, Nanos repeated a similar answer.
“We’re going to assume both sides of that. We’ll look at both sides,” he said.
Following Tuesday’s news conference, the Pima County Sheriff’s Department revealed it is “aware” of reports of a possible ransom note after TMZ reportedly received written correspondence demanding a “substantial amount” of money in exchange for Guthrie’s return.
SAVANNAH GUTHRIE’S MOTHER NANCY POSSIBLY ABDUCTED FROM HER HOME, AUTHORITIES SAY
The White House also commented on her disappearance, writing: “The search for Savannah Guthrie’s mother, Nancy Guthrie, is ongoing, and authorities are requesting assistance from the public. Anyone with information is urged to contact 911.”
“Our prayers are with the Guthrie family as we hope for Nancy’s safe return home,” the White House posted.
Savannah Guthrie spoke out on Instagram in a post on Monday, writing “We need you.”
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“We believe in prayer. We believe in voices raised in unison, in love, in hope. We believe in goodness. We believe in humanity. Above all, we believe in Him,” she wrote. “Thank you for lifting your prayers with ours for our beloved mom, our dearest Nancy, a woman of deep conviction, a good and faithful servant. Raise your prayers with us and believe with us that she will be lifted by them in this very moment.”
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