Nancy Guthrie Abduction Motive Identified as Possible ‘Revenge’ After Reports Savannah Is ‘Questioning’ How Much Her ‘Spotlight’ Put Her ‘Family’s Safety’ at Risk

Police have released surveillance video and photos, recovered DNA, but have not yet identified a suspect or disclosed a motive in the Nancy Guthrie abduction case.

One of the most surprising things, a month and a half into the Nancy Guthrie investigation, is how little we know about what happened the night Savannah Guthrie’s mom was abducted. Police have released surveillance video and photos, and have recovered DNA, but no suspect has yet been identified, and no motive has been disclosed.

But do police know the motive? Are they close to figuring out who did this and why? Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos recently told NBC Nightly News that investigators believe they know why Nancy Guthrie’s home was targeted. “We believe we know why he did this, and we believe that it was targeted, but we, we can’t, we’re not 100% sure of that,” Nanos said.

“So it’d be silly to tell people, ‘Yeah, don’t worry about it. You’re, you’re not his target.’ Don’t think for a minute that because it happened to the Guthrie family, you’re safe. No, keep your wits about you,” Nanos also said.

And former FBI special agent Harry Trombitas told Yahoo that while the motive could be money-related, it’s “appearing less and less” likely. “There’s too much involved,” Trombitas said. “There are too many ways people can get caught.” Not just that, he explained that kidnappings for ransom are actually pretty uncommon, and have “really decreased over the years.”

He explained, “[The motive] could be for revenge of some type, anger or it could be for a third purpose that we’re just not even aware of.”

The investigation at this point is focusing on processing “mixed” DNA recovered from Nancy Guthrie’s home and also on following up leads from neighbors, including focusing on a possible empty house in the neighborhood and anyone who might have been working in the neighborhood the days before the disappearance. There have also been reports that police is looking at a damaged utility box that might be connected to a reported internet outage around the time of the kidnapping.

“The FBI and law enforcement will continue to work this case as though she’s still alive,” Trombitas also added. “I know that with her age, 84 years old, and some of her health conditions that she has, the prospects of her being found alive are not as great as they were originally.”

All of this comes after a source told Radar Online that Savannah Guthrie is reevaluating her next steps amid fears that her job might have had something to do with her mother’s disappearance. “Savannah is devastated – and fearing the worst. She’s trying to be strong, but this has shattered her,” the insider said.

“She’s questioning everything – her career, her public life and whether staying in the spotlight is worth the risk to her family’s safety.” The source added, “Her only focus is protecting her family. Returning to Today is absolutely the last thing on her mind.”