Mystery Deepens: Cadaver Dogs Called Off in Nancy Guthrie Search — The New Clue Is Sending Chills Across the Country

TUCSON, Ariz. — More than five weeks after the suspected abduction of Nancy Guthrie — the 84-year-old mother of “Today” co-host Savannah Guthrie — Arizona authorities say cadaver dogs used earlier in the investigation are not currently being deployed as the search continues.

The elder Guthrie is believed to have been kidnapped from her home in the Catalina Foothills in northern Tucson around 2:30 a.m. on Feb. 1.

While no suspects have been publicly identified, and she has not been found, cadaver dogs had been deployed earlier in the case, according to Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos. They have not been visible in weeks.

“They are available if needed in the future,” he told Fox News Digital.

There are a number of reasons not to be using cadaver dogs at this stage in the investigation, according to Betsy Brantner Smith, a retired police sergeant and spokeswoman for the National Police Association.

One would be if there’s credible information that Guthrie is still alive.

“Anything is possible,” Nanos told Fox News Digital last week, adding that he would not discuss specific leads or evidence in the case.

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Arizona authorities say cadaver dogs used earlier in the investigation of Nancy Guthrie, the missing 84-year-old mother of “Today” co-host Savannah Guthrie, are not currently being deployed as the search continues.James Keivom for NY Post

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A general view of Nancy Guthrie’s neighborhood.James Keivom for NY Post

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Guthrie is believed to have been kidnapped from her Arizona home around 2:30 a.m. on Feb. 1.savannahguthrie/Instagram

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Brantner Smith, who is not involved in the case, said departments may hold back K-9 resources for several reasons. Those could be that authorities don’t have a good idea of where to search, they think she might be concealed in a place where dogs would have a hard time detecting her, or they believe she’s been taken to Mexico, according to Brantner Smith.

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“I do believe that the sheriff’s department has much more information that they are not releasing to the public,” she told Fox News Digital. “And I’m not sure at this point why that would be, unless they have a solid suspect and don’t want to tip them off.

“Most departments, including the Pima County Sheriff’s, don’t have their own cadaver dogs and borrow them from state and federal authorities or neighboring jurisdictions.

In Guthrie’s case, the sheriff’s department sought K-9 assistance from the local Border Patrol office earlier in the investigation.

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Savannah and Nancy Guthrie in a photo from Instagram.Instagram/savannahguthrie

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“They are available if needed in the future,” Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos said about the dogs.REUTERSPCSD deferred further comment on the K-9s to Customs and Border Protection, which did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The biggest lead so far has been Nest camera video showing a masked intruder on Guthrie’s doorstep the morning of her abduction.

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A member of the Pima County sheriff’s office remains outside of Nancy Guthrie’s home on Feb. 9.AP

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The Pima County Sheriff’s Department investigated a possible trespass incident after members of a volunteer search collective known as the Searching Mothers of Sonora looked into Nancy Guthrie’s disappearance.James Keivom for NY Post
He is described as about 5 feet, 9 inches to 5 feet, 10 inches tall and of medium build.

He was wearing a black Ozark Trail backpack.

Authorities have said they won’t consider the case cold until they run out of viable leads to follow up on — and tens of thousands have come in so far.

Savannah Guthrie has asked anyone with information to dial 1-800-CALL-FBI.

There’s a combined reward of more than $1.2 million for information that leads to her mother’s recovery.