Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos said on Feb. 13 that investigators have found DNA inside the home of missing 84-year-old Nancy Guthrie that does not belong to her, adding a new forensic focus to the high-profile abduction case.
The latest find comes as federal and local authorities continue an intensive, nearly two-week search for Guthrie and the person who took her from her Tucson home on Jan. 31 or Feb. 1.
Nanos did not directly say that the DNA belongs to the suspect, but made clear that it is not Guthrie’s. “What I believe is, what I know is, we found DNA … that was not Nancy Guthrie's DNA,” he said.
Nanos described the forensic work as highly technical and largely in the hands of specialists. He said investigators are coordinating with a lab that is running advanced testing on the sample.
The sheriff said that the case is being driven by a large, joint team of local and federal investigators working around the clock.
Officials have previously said Guthrie, who is the mother of TV host Savannah Guthrie, was taken against her will from her home. Federal agents and local deputies have been canvassing neighborhoods, collecting security footage, and expanding their search zone around Guthrie’s home and other key locations tied to her movements before she disappeared.
The FBI has released what it called “new identifying details” about the suspect captured on Guthrie’s doorbell camera and has raised the reward for information to $100,000. According to the bureau, forensic specialists in its Operational Technology Division examined the doorbell video and determined the suspect is a man roughly 5 feet 9 to 5 feet 10 with an average build.
He was seen at Guthrie’s front door carrying a black 25-liter Ozark Trail Hiker Pack backpack, at the same entryway where her blood was found earlier in the investigation.
Authorities said the FBI has received more than 13,000 tips from the public since Feb. 1. Each submission is reviewed “for credibility, relevance, and information that can be acted upon by law enforcement,” the bureau said, noting that personnel are staffing a 24-hour command post where dozens of agents and investigators are assigned new leads every shift.
Officials are urging anyone with potentially relevant information to contact 1-800-CALL-FBI or submit tips online as the search for Guthrie, who requires daily medication, enters a critical stage.