Nancy Guthrie sheriff defends pace of investigation more than 4 months into search

The sheriff overseeing the probe into the suspected abduction of Nancy Guthrie blamed laboratory work, technological protocols and the judicial process for delays successful the investigation, which entered its 4th period Monday, successful an interrogation with section media this week.

"It's conscionable not a detective goes retired there, talks to somebody, and we tin marque an arrest," helium told the Tucson-based KOLD-TV. "This is simply a precise delicate case, but what truly makes it prolonged is we bash trust connected labs."

Detectives person relied connected laboratory enactment for DNA and integer investigating successful particular, helium said.

Although the interrogation was published Monday, a spokesperson for Nanos' bureau told Fox News Digital helium sat down for it "several weeks ago."

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A divided representation shows Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos speaking to reporters astir the suspected abduction of Nancy Guthrie, alongside an representation of Guthrie seated during a crippled of mahjong. (Rebecca Noble/Reuters, Courtesy of NBC)

"This is an progressive and ongoing investigation," the spokesperson said. "Forensic investigation of DNA and video grounds remains underway. If and erstwhile determination is simply a important improvement successful this case, it volition beryllium shared publicly."

In a arguable determination that stemmed from a nationalist rift with the FBI, 11 weeks aft helium sent hairsbreadth samples from Guthrie's location successful the Catalina Foothills to a backstage genetics laboratory successful Florida, they were forwarded to the bureau's Quantico laboratory for much precocious testing. There were besides aboriginal reports of mixed DNA samples, which are hard to isolate, and ongoing integer forensic analysis.

"When you're looking astatine those labs and the enactment they do, you person a subject there, and subject has rules that it has to spell by," Nanos said successful his section quality interview. "Even though it's not — DNA they'll archer you isn't an nonstop subject — it's 99% plus. So it's beauteous close, but you inactive person to travel rules."

In summation to technological protocols, determination are besides rules for the judicial system, helium said.

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Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos speaks successful the Pima County Sheriff's Department successful Tucson, Arizona, connected Friday, May 8, 2026. Nanos said that investigators are getting person to solving the abduction of Nancy Guthrie, the 84-year-old parent of "Today" co-host Savannah Guthrie. (Matt Symons for Fox News Digital)

"If I were to accidental there's a affirmative to this, it is that radical are working, doing their champion to enactment wrong those rules truthful that they person that knowing that, look, cipher wants to apprehension the incorrect person," helium said. "We wanna marque definite that, DNA doesn't conscionable place a suspect. It besides exonerates those who are innocent."

NANCY GUTHRIE CASE: SHERIFF NANOS SAYS 'WE ARE' CLOSER TO SOLVING 84-YEAR-OLD'S ABDUCTION

Although his bureau declined to reply questions astir who extracurricular the household whitethorn person been ruled retired oregon remains a idiosyncratic of interest, Nanos told Fox News Digital past period that detectives were making advancement successful the case. However, nary suspects person been publically identified, nary arrests person been made, and Guthrie's whereabouts stay unknown.

"The sheriff needs to springiness america factual answers connected what is going connected and what helium is doing, not vague platitudes astir the technological process," said RJ Dreiling, a California transgression defence lawyer who is pursuing the case.

"The Guthrie kidnapping has captivated the state — not conscionable due to the fact that of however good known Ms. Guthrie’s girl is, but due to the fact that if this loved and respected pistillate tin beryllium ripped retired of her home, and we can’t find the idiosyncratic who did it," Dreiling told Fox News Digital. "It makes america each wonderment however harmless are we each really?"

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Savannah Guthrie poses with her parent Nancy Guthrie during a accumulation interruption portion hosting NBC's "Today Show" unrecorded from Australia. (Photo by Don Arnold/WireImage)

While Nanos pointed to forensic investigating arsenic a crushed for the dilatory gait of the investigation, national sources acquainted with the probe told Fox News Digital implicit the play that the FBI is discussing deploying caller technological tools successful the case.

Morgan Wright, the CEO and laminitis of the National Center for Open and Unsolved Cases, said helium believes the caller tools are apt focused connected 1 of 3 areas, each of them digital.

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"The solution to this lawsuit is going to be, I think, thing technical, thing that they travel up with — caller ways of analyzing data," helium told Fox News Digital. "I'm looking astatine the video, the video forensics, signals analysis, blockchain benignant of stuff."

A pistillate walks her canine past a Pima County Sheriff's Office patrol car extracurricular the location of Nancy Guthrie successful Tucson, Ariz., connected Feb. 8, 2026. Nancy Guthrie, the 84-year-old parent of writer and tv big Savannah Guthrie, went missing from her location connected Feb. 1. (Rebecca Noble/Getty Images)

The investigative familial genealogy process remains ongoing, and could besides ace the case, helium said.

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Guthrie is the 84-year-old parent of "Today" co-host Savannah Guthrie.

There is simply a combined reward of implicit $1.2 cardinal for accusation that cracks the case, which remains unclaimed.

The household is asking anyone with accusation to dial 1-800-CALL-FBI. Anonymous tips tin beryllium called into Tucson's 88-Crime hotline astatine 1-520-882-7463.