Savannah Guthrie’s Mother: Investigation Slows, Resources May Be Scaled Back

The search for Nancy Guthrie, mother of “Today” show host Savannah Guthrie, has entered a third week with investigators acknowledging the possibility of scaling back resources as leads continue to come up empty, according to sources with knowledge of the case.

Nearly three weeks after the 84-year-old Guthrie vanished from her Tucson, Arizona home, investigators are facing a frustrating lack of progress. Partial DNA recovered at the scene remains unidentified, technology companies and the FBI have found no additional video from her home security system, and authorities have been unable to connect a vehicle to the apparent kidnapping, sources told ABC News.

Currently, approximately 400 personnel from various law enforcement agencies are assigned to the case, operating around the clock, the Pima County Sheriff’s Department has stated. However, investigators believe a transition to a more sustainable, long-term level of manpower may be necessary if the current pace of investigation continues, the sources said.

The Guthrie family has been briefed on the possibility of a shift in resources and understands that some leads have not yielded results, according to the sources.

“It has been over two weeks, and, in these types of investigations, you have to at one point move on to a long-term sustainable level of manpower,” said Rich Frankel, an ABC News contributor and former FBI hostage negotiator. “It is not a closed case.”

The Pima County Sheriff’s Department released a statement affirming that the investigation remains active. “As long as leads continue to come in, investigators will continue to follow up on them. Currently, several hundred personnel are assigned to this case from various law enforcement agencies and are actively reviewing thousands of tips.”

Investigators are focusing on several key pieces of evidence. They have a physical description of the suspect – a male, between 5 feet 9 inches and 5 feet 10 inches tall, of average build. A 25-liter Ozark Trail Hiker Pack, sold exclusively at Walmart, has also been identified as a significant item in the case.

Walmart has provided purchase records for all sales of that specific backpack across Arizona, allowing investigators to track down every buyer, sources said. Detectives are also canvassing gun shops in the Tucson area, showing doorbell camera footage of the suspect in an attempt to identify him.

Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos has publicly stated that all members of the Guthrie family have been cleared, allowing investigators to focus their efforts outward.

The partial DNA recovered from inside Guthrie’s residence is currently undergoing analysis at a private, out-of-state lab. The process of separating individual DNA profiles from a mixture is described as painstaking and precise. Once completed, the profiles will be submitted to the FBI’s national database for comparison.

The investigation is also exploring the possibility of investigative genetic genealogy. The reward for information leading to Nancy Guthrie or her captor now totals more than $200,000.

Jason Pack, a former FBI agent and current chief executive of Media Rep Global Strategies, emphasized the gap between public perception and the reality of an ongoing investigation. “The things most likely to break a case open are almost never the things being discussed in one-on-one press interviews. They are happening in labs, in Walmart security offices, in gun shops, in backend server logs, and in conversations between investigators who have been staring at the same timeline long enough that it might be time for a fresh set of eyes,” Pack said.