Nancy Guthrie’s Kidnappers Likely Dumped Her Body Because She Was ‘No Longer of Value’ After Things Went ‘Sideways’
Over two months into the Nancy Guthrie investigation, it’s getting harder to hold onto hope that Savannah Guthrie’s mom is still out there, alive. Police released pictures and surveillance video of a masked suspect, and believe she was taken from her home sometime between the night of January 31 and February 1, but there have been no credible leads, and no motive has been established.
Not just that, though the family has received multiple ransom demands, no payment was made, presumably because law enforcement did not consider them legitimate, or because no proof of life was provided. Which leaves us in the very difficult position of having to seriously consider the possibility that Nancy Guthrie will not be found alive.
Related: Who are Savannah Guthrie’s siblings?
Brian Martin, an Indiana detective who specializes in cold cases, told NewsNation’s Brian Entin that it’s likely that Nancy Guthrie suffered a medical episode during her kidnapping, forcing the captors to dump her body.
“What really bothers me is if they underestimated Miss Guthrie’s health and thought, ‘Well, we’ll take her, this will be easy. We’ll hold on to her at an unknown location for a day or two. We’ll get some money out of this and we’ll leave her in a Walmart parking lot,’” Martin said.
“And what they had to do is … it sounds horrible…. They had to dispose of Miss Guthrie because she was no longer of value to them in that monetary gain that they’re hoping to get,” he added, explaining that when things went “sideways” the kidnappers likely thought they had no other choice.
“It just scares me to think that somebody maybe took Miss Guthrie, and she had some sort of medical event when it was happening, because obviously it’d be an incredibly stressful situation and very taxing on somebody,” Martin added.
This new theory about what could have happened comes over two months since Nancy Guthrie disappeared, and after her daughter, Savannah, returned to the Today show. The investigation into Nancy’s disappearance points to a masked, armed individual taking her from the house overnight. Her wallet, keys, and phone were still in the house, and there’s no indication that the kidnappers intended to rob the house.
Once Savannah Guthrie returned to the Today show on April 6, more ransom notes were received. According to Rob Shuter, “She was told this would happen the moment she went back on TV. And sadly, it did.”
Police at this point believe neither of these new notes are authentic, just an attempt by unscrupulous people to take advantage of the situation. “It’s exactly what she feared,” the source said. “People inserting themselves into the story for attention or money.”
The reward for information about Nancy Guthrie’s disappearance is up to $1 million and the investigation is ongoing, with police now focusing on the DNA evidence recovered from the crime scene.
