Savannah Guthrie Announces $1 Million Reward in Search for Mom Nancy, Donates $500,00 to Center for Missing & Exploited Children
The Pima County Sherrif’s Office has released a new photo of the potential suspect in the Nancy Guthrie abduction case. Little else has changed in the search for the octogenarian. Some fear the case has gone cold. It seems the family might fear that, as well. Savannah Guthrie is trying to spur some movement by offering a massive reward. She announced a reward of up to $1 million for information that leads to the recovery of her elderly mother. The Today anchor isn’t stopping there, either. Guthrie has also donated $500,000 to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children.
The Guthrie family offers a $1 million reward
The Guthrie family is hoping a large reward might entice someone with information about the Nancy Guthrie case to come forward. On February 24, Savannah Guthrie took to Instagram to announce that she and her family are offering a $1 million reward for information leading to the recovery of Nancy Guthrie. The longtime Today host said that the family would provide up to $1 million to individuals whose tips directly led to Guthrie’s recovery. The reward, separate from the FBI’s, is not contingent on an arrest. The $100,000 reward offered by investigators remains active, as well.
According to People, Guthrie’s wording of “up to $1 million” suggests the reward may be split if multiple tips lead to Nancy’s return. The outlet claims the family was prepared to deploy the reward on the same day the 84-year-old was reported missing. The investigators advised them to hold back. The reward update might mean organic leads in the Nancy Guthrie case are drying up.
In addition to the $1 million reward, the family has donated $500,000 to the Center for Missing and Exploited Children. The donation, Savannah explained, is aimed at helping other families search for their loved ones. She went on to say that the Guthrie family hopes the donation sheds light on the resources provided by the organization.
Key events for the Nancy Guthrie case
Nancy Guthrie was last seen alive on January 31, when she was dropped off at home after dining with her daughter, Annie. Friends alerted the family that something was amiss when Nancy failed to show up at a long-standing social engagement the following morning. After a cursory search of the home, the Guthrie family called the police around noon on February 1.
The police immediately began operating under the belief that Nancy Guthrie had been abducted due to clues inside the home and the elderly woman’s health and mobility issues. The first media reports about the presumed abduction surfaced the same day.
Days later, with seemingly no clues, the police continued to comb the neighborhood. News organizations, however, were receiving information. TMZ and several other media outlets received a ransom note that requested Bitcoin in exchange for Guthrie’s safe return. One news anchor publicly stated they believed the note was legitimate.
The Guthrie family, including Savannah Guthrie, requested “proof of life” from the kidnappers shortly after the ransom note was received. The deadline came and went. TMZ later received additional notes from an anonymous individual claiming to have key information in Nancy Guthrie’s case. They also requested Bitcoin in exchange for information.
About a week into the hunt for the octogenerian, the FBI announced a $50,000 reward for information leading to the recovery of Nancy Guthrie; on February 12, they increased the reward in the case to $100,000. A video of a suspect at Guthrie’s door on the evening of her disappearance was released to the public around the same time. TMZ later revealed that the search for surveillance footage from Guthrie’s house was complicated by the fact that she did not have a Nest video subscription. While she could see who was at the door in real-time, she did not enable the feature to record videos. Google has been assisting. Still, there are limitations on the data that can be recovered.
This is a developing story.
