TUCSON — Investigators were getting closer to identifying articles of clothing the masked man on Nancy Guthrie’s porch was wearing, including the pants, shoes and shirt or jacket, the Pima County sheriff said.
The search for the missing 84-year-old mother of “Today” show co-host Savannah Guthrie entered its 22nd day, nearly a week after the news anchor posted on social media pleading with anyone who knew her mother’s whereabouts that it was “never too late.”
No suspect had yet been named, and complex DNA evidence was still undergoing lab analysis, Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos said in an interview with NBC.
Authorities had no updates on the investigation as of the morning of Feb. 22, according to Angelica Carrillo, spokesperson for the Sheriff’s Department.
DNA found on Guthrie’s property was mixed, meaning it came from more than one person, making it harder to run through national databases, Nanos said in an interview broadcast Feb. 21.
The FBI also has been analyzing DNA found on a glove discovered about 2 miles from Guthrie’s home, but no results have been released.
Guthrie has been missing since Jan. 31. Detectives were pushing to identify a masked individual captured on doorbell video the night she disappeared and have said they are not ruling out the possibility that more than one person may be involved.
As crews positioned orange barricades along the quiet roadway outside Guthrie’s home, volunteers from the nonprofit search group Madres Buscadoras de Sonora, which searches across the northern Mexican state for missing people, moved through the area posting missing person flyers.
On Feb. 22, some volunteers gathered in the parking lot of a nearby Hobby Lobby for an informal search party that later recovered a backpack. It was handed over to deputies.
Tips were flowing to the Sheriff’s Department and FBI lines. Authorities have urged the public to submit actionable tips only, not well wishes or similar comments.
Investigators still reviewing evidence
A significant development in the Guthrie case came Feb. 10, when investigators recovered footage of a masked person captured by Guthrie’s doorbell camera on the night she went missing. Authorities were still looking for that person, who was wearing gloves in the footage.
Investigators continued reviewing surveillance footage tied to key pieces of evidence, including a backpack possibly purchased from Walmart.
The Sheriff’s Department has said it was working with the retailer to help identify the purchaser. Legal experts note that stores routinely share transaction records and video footage with law enforcement during active investigations.
Carrillo said several hundred law enforcement personnel remain assigned to the case, with staffing levels changing based on investigative leads. The investigation will remain active until Guthrie is found or all leads are exhausted, she said.
Intense media presence causes traffic reroute
On Feb. 21, the Sheriff’s Department asked media crews to move unattended vehicles from near Guthrie’s home as deputies converted the roadway to one-way traffic.
The Catalina Foothills neighborhood has become overtaken by members of the media, livestreamers and drones as her case generates extensive media coverage.
Since Feb. 1, media vehicles and onlookers have crowded the narrow roadway, at times limiting access for residents, trash collection and emergency responders, county officials said.
What to know: Did they find Nancy Guthrie? Lab experts continue DNA analysis
Sheriff does not plan any media availability
Carrillo said no news conferences were planned, and the sheriff did not expect to have any media availability for the week of Feb. 23.
The sheriff’s last news conference was Feb. 5.
