A veteran crime expert laid out a stark picture of how Savannah Guthrie’s mother, Nancy, may have been abducted from her Arizona home and why her captors may soon be forced to act as pressure mounts on the case.
“The kidnappers took a lot of risk to do this, they’re going to have to take an additional step, to communicate, to reach their goal,” retired Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms and Explosives special agent Jim Cavanaugh told Guthrie’s co-host Craig Melvin on NBC’s “Today.”
“They went to a lot of effort to break in, to assault Nancy, take her away, hide her out. And now they have to close their circle for their goal and that is they have to communicate,” he said.
Cavanaugh, now a crime analyst for NBC News, spoke just hours after Guthrie appeared in an emotional video flanked by her siblings, Annie and Camron, pleading for the safe return of their 84-year-old mother.
Nancy Guthrie vanished from her $1 million home in Tucson late Saturday or early Sunday. Investigators say there were signs of a break-in, and drops of blood were found on her doorstep.
Despite the grim details, Cavanaugh said the family’s public plea could force a turning point.
“The best thing they can do, their best option is to release Nancy, leave her at the foot of a church somewhere, a store, or take the step to communicate to see if you can reach your goal,” he said.
Guthrie and her siblings have acknowledged that ransom notes demanding Bitcoin were sent to news outlets and the FBI but warned that proof of life is required before any response.
Cavanaugh agreed with that caution, noting the demands could have come from anywhere. He suggested abductors might try to prove Nancy is alive through physical evidence or images.
“Then the communication can happen where they can try to reach their goal,” he said. “That’s what should happen, that’s what we want to happen, either communication or release her, if your crime has not worked.”
Cavanaugh also said the case may have spiraled out of control for whoever took Nancy.
“They got too big too fast,” he said. “They took Nancy, whether they knew this was Savannah’s mom, or just thought it was a wealthy woman. This thing got real big, real fast.”
Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos has said investigators do not yet have a suspect. Nancy requires medication every 24 hours, which was found inside her home, heightening fears for her health. Her pacemaker stopped syncing with her Apple devices around 2 a.m. Sunday, a possible clue to when she was taken.
As investigators comb through camera footage and forensic evidence, Cavanaugh said the abductors now face a stark choice.
“So they either have to do it or release Nancy,” he said.
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