Former FBI profiler outlines alleged abductor’s possible personality traits
From CNN’s Toni Odejimi
Former FBI profiler Candice DeLong described the possible personality attributes of Nancy Guthrie’s alleged abductor.
“For somebody to think they can pull off a crime like this, they have to be enormously confident in themselves, and the term narcissistic psychopath comes to mind,” DeLong told CNN. “Psychopath being a clinical term, someone that has no empathy for others, no guilt for what they do to other people.”
“They do not see themselves as fallible in any way,” she added.
Delong said widespread doorbell camera recording has made it more difficult for those committing a crime to evade surveillance. The Pima County Sheriff’s Department has asked neighbors within a two-mile radius of Guthrie’s home for doorbell footage tracking back to January.
Even a small sample of DNA could be analyzed and used to link a potential suspect to the crime scene, a former Texas police chief told CNN earlier today. The FBI has analyzed a glove found near the Guthrie home for evidence, which investigators believe appears similar to the ones worn by the masked person in the footage.
The person more likely to commit a kidnapping like this would think they’re without error and cause them to believe they could pull off a crime of this magnitude, said DeLong.
But the suspect in the footage didn’t seem sophisticated enough, according to DeLong, citing the suspect covering the camera’s lens with leaves before walking away.
“The best lead they have right now is that backpack,” retired FBI agent says
From CNN’s Kara Nelson and Toni Odejimi
The masked subject seen on video recovered from Guthrie’s doorbell camera and released by the FBI, shows the person wearing a backpack.
FBI
While the FBI tests a glove they believe is connected to the abduction of Nancy Guthrie, a backpack could be another breakthrough in the investigation, according to retired FBI Supervisory Special Agent Jason Pack.
“The best piece of information, and the best lead they have right now, is that backpack in that video that they’ve released,” Pack told CNN.
The suspected abductor in the doorbell footage outside of Nancy Guthrie’s home is seen wearing a black, 32-liter Ozark Trail backpack, according to the FBI, leading authorities to check retailers in the Arizona area selling the same brand of backpacks.
“They’re seeing who’s purchased these over the past few months, and I guarantee you, they’re knocking at people’s doors that involved these backpacks and just trying to run down each of those sales,” Pack added.
Along with the backpack, the masked individual is seen wearing black gloves, a ski mask, and a holster, which by the position, suggests the suspect is right-handed.
The glove recovered near Guthrie’s Tucson home is believed by investigators to match the one worn by the suspect in the video, and being paired with the backpack could help law enforcement officials identify her alleged abductor.
“If they could find a sale that also had another piece of article that was in that video, whether that was the backpack and the ski mask or the backpack and the holster, something like that would really narrow down that field.”
FBI says glove with DNA is not the one previously photographed by New York Post
From CNN’s Ed Lavandera and Alaa Elassar
A member of the FBI surveils the area around Nancy Guthrie’s residence on February 11, in Tucson, Arizona.
Brandon Bell/Getty Images
An FBI official told CNN that the glove containing DNA — which investigators believe appears similar to the ones worn by the masked individual recorded on Nancy Guthrie’s doorbell camera — is not the same glove previously photographed by the New York Post.
The New York Post had published a photo taken on February 11 of what it reported was a black glove recovered by investigators less than two miles from Guthrie’s home, according to the outlet.
When asked by CNN whether the recently reported glove tied to the forensic testing was the one shown in widely circulated images published by the New York Post, the FBI official responded: “No.”
Several gloves have been recovered as part of the investigation, with the furthest found 10 miles from Guthrie’s home, according to the Pima County Sheriff’s Department.
The comment comes as investigators continue analyzing DNA recovered from the glove in an effort to identify a possible suspect. Authorities have not released images of the specific glove tied to the DNA testing.
15 days into search, well-wishers tend to memorial outside Nancy Guthrie’s home
From CNN’s Amber Sumpter
15 days in, visitors still tend the memorial outside Nancy Guthrie’s home
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Kathleen Kauffman drove two hours on Sunday to reach Nancy Guthrie’s Catalina Foothills, Arizona, home, where a memorial honoring the 84-year-old continues to grow more than two weeks into the desperate search to find her.
A funeral director from Meza, Arizona, and an avid ‘Today” show watcher, Kauffman told CNN she wanted to pay her respects to the Guthrie family.
CNN video shows Kauffman adding a ribbon to the memorial and tending to other momentos.
CNN’s Amanda Musa and Sarah Dewberry contributed to this report.
Glove DNA testing may yield answers in 24 to 48 hours, former police chief says
From CNN’s Alaa Elassar and Toni Odejimi
A glove recovered near Nancy Guthrie’s home believed by investigators to match the one worn by the masked individual seen on her doorbell camera could represent a pivotal development in the case.
The FBI says DNA recovered from the glove is undergoing forensic testing in an effort to identify a potential suspect. How quickly answers come will depend on the type and quality of the sample, Jeffrey Halstead, former Fort Worth police chief, told CNN.
“These are very, very strong and definitive updates,” Halstead said.
The urgency of the case may allow officials to escalate testing and retrieve results faster than usual, he added. “It could be anywhere between 24 and 48 hours,” Halstead said.
While the strength of the findings will depend on the type of DNA recovered — whether full or touch DNA — Halstead said even smaller samples can be significant if they tie directly to the glove and, in turn, to the person captured on video outside Guthrie’s home.
“They are all very, very relevant,” he said, describing the evidence as potentially tracing back to a “centralized suspect.”
Halstead said investigators will likely intensify their focus around where the glove was found, expanding outward in a targeted search pattern. If the DNA links to a known individual, he said, additional developments could follow quickly as authorities close in on stronger leads.
Analysis: What the discovery of new glove evidence could mean for the Nancy Guthrie investigation
From CNN’s Josh Campbell
A member of the Pima County sheriffs office outside of Nancy Guthrie’s home on February 9, in Tucson, Arizona.
Ty ONeil/AP
In a significant development, the FBI said today investigators have located a glove near Nancy Guthrie’s home that appears to visually match gloves worn by a suspect seen on doorbell camera video at the home.
The FBI says DNA from the recovered glove is being analyzed to determine the identity of a possible suspect.
A first step for investigators when obtaining DNA evidence is to run it through criminal databases to determine if it matches a known criminal.
As part of a burgeoning field known as investigative genetic genealogy, authorities would also likely be submitting the evidence to third-party DNA mapping services offered to the general public. Even if the suspect has never used one of these services, a family member might have, which can provide clues to the suspect’s identity based on the unique nature of family DNA profiling.
Familial DNA was a critical tool used by police in the case of Bryan Kohberger, who was convicted of killing four Idaho college students.
Beyond DNA testing, if the recovered glove is determined to belong to the suspect seen at Guthrie’s home, the location where it was found could be the most important clue yet suggesting his route of travel after her suspected abduction.
Glove found near Guthrie’s home appears to match those of the suspect in doorbell cam video
From CNN’s Josh Campbell and Lauren Mascarenhas
In an aerial view, Nancy Guthrie’s residence is seen on Sunday in Tuscon, Arizona.
Brandon Bell/Getty Images
A glove found near missing 84-year-old Nancy Guthrie’s home appears to match those worn by a suspect recorded in doorbell camera footage outside her home the morning she disappeared, according to the FBI.
The glove, which contained DNA, was one of “approximately” 16 that investigators found near Guthrie’s home, most of which the FBI said belonged to searchers who discarded them while working in the area.
“The one with the DNA profile recovered is different and appears to match the gloves of the subject in the surveillance video,” the FBI said in a statement today as the search for the grandmother entered its third week.
The FBI statement appears to indicate the suspected match is based on a visual comparison of the gloves rather than forensic testing. CNN has reached out to the FBI to clarify its statement.
The FBI is awaiting final test results from the glove, the agency said, adding that the process typically takes 24 hours.
What we know about the suspect in Nancy Guthrie’s disappearance
From CNN’s Lauren Mascarenhas
A combination of images captured by a security camera show what the Federal Bureau of Investigation describes as an armed individual appearing to have tampered with the camera at Nancy Guthrie’s front door the morning of her disappearance on February 1.
Pima County Sheriff’s Department/Handout/Reuters
As the search for 84-year-old Nancy Guthrie enters its third week, investigators have not publicly named a suspect, though they have shared details about the person seen in doorbell footage outside her home the morning she vanished.
Here’s what we know:
The FBI described the masked man seen in doorbell footage from outside Guthrie’s home as 5 feet 9 inches to 5 feet 10 inches tall with an average build. He was wearing dark clothing, black gloves, sneakers, and a black 25-liter Ozark Trail Hiker Pack backpack.
Forensic teams uncovered DNA at Guthrie’s home that does not match her or anyone in her immediate circle, authorities said. Investigators have not revealed where on the property the genetic material was found but say it is currently undergoing laboratory analysis.
Investigators are working to forensically analyze multiple pieces of evidence, including several gloves, one of which was discovered up to 10 miles from Guthrie’s residence.
Authorities have yet to name a suspect in the case. Law enforcement detained and questioned a man in Rio Rico, Arizona, for hours before releasing him on February 10.
FBI Director Kash Patel said investigators are examining “persons of interest” but declined to say who may be under suspicion.
An operation conducted Friday at a residence near Guthrie’s home ended without any arrests, a law enforcement official said.
True crime livestreamers and podcasters have poured into Arizona as the search for Nancy Guthrie continues, expanding the media presence in Tucson far beyond satellite trucks and network correspondents.
But not everyone believes the influx of online personalities has been helpful.
Arizona state Rep. Alma Hernandez delivered a blunt rebuke on X, accusing some self-styled online reporters of undermining the seriousness of the case.
“As someone who lives & represents Tucson/Pima County, I am so sick of watching the ‘reporting,’ grifting, insane speculation, lies, and BS by random wannabe journalists and YouTubers who have now caused more harm than good to this entire situation and put this serious case in jeopardy,” she wrote.
Hernandez urged content creators to “GO HOME,” adding, “Let law enforcement do their jobs. Stop following them during SWAT operations and playing detectives.”
“I am sick of the constant LIES from those who can’t even spell Tucson and clearly have never been to our city,” Hernandez said.
The growing presence of online sleuths is a double-edged sword, according to Josh Schirard, a former Galveston County, Texas, police captain who spoke to CNN.
“It’s really a little column A, column B,” Schirard said, explaining while online coverage can generate fresh attention, it can also divert valuable law enforcement resources toward tips that may not be credible.
He also noted some of the most critical breakthroughs in major cases have come from the public — not from detectives working alone behind a desk.
“We’ve seen it time and time again where someone in the community provides the key tip, spots something unusual, or helps put the puzzle pieces together,” Schirard said.
Some of the independent streamers traveled from across the country within days of Guthrie’s disappearance, bringing with them sizable social media followings in the hundreds of thousands. At least one has conducted police ride-alongs or embedded with fugitive task forces.
Others have been broadcasting to large YouTube audiences from out of state, then reporting from Tucson in person. They say their goal is accountability and transparency.
The Pima County Sheriff’s Department has repeatedly pushed back on rumors, including claims circulating online about a so-called “prime suspect.”
“Social media’s kind of an ugly world sometimes,” Sheriff Chris Nanos said last week, urging the public not to spread unsubstantiated information.
