An anonymous source alleges that the investigators in the case were inexperienced.

Nancy Guthrie case suffered when authorities ‘rushed to judgment’ that she had ‘wandered off,’ source alleges

An anonymous source alleges that the investigators in the case were inexperienced.

By Raechal Shewfelt

Raechal Shewfelt

Raechal Shewfelt is a writer at **. She has been working at EW since 2024. Her work has previously appeared on Yahoo and in American *Journalism Review* and *The Shreveport Times*.

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on April 2, 2026 11:59 p.m. ET

Savannah Guthrie and mother, Nancy Guthrie. Credit:

Savannah Guthrie/Instagram

The Nancy Guthrie case was bungled from the start, an anonymous source alleges in a new report.

"Speaking with some people, that actually know the intimate knowledge of this investigation, told me that there was a rush to judgment of what was happening at that scene, and it was that Nancy had somehow wandered off," the source said in a NewsNation interview that aired Thursday. "So they rushed to that judgment, stayed with that judgment, and then ran this investigation as if it were a search-and-rescue issue, as opposed to a possible criminal issue."

Law enforcement on the scene were not "tenured homicide detectives" and "didn't have a lot of experience," which happens when people install their friends into positions, the source also alleged, adding that there are no solid suspects.

"The people I've talked to that are still in the know on this investigation tell me that there’s no direct suspect right now," the source said. "No name on the table."

The unnamed source said there was "extremely low" morale tied to Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos. When asked what the department would say to Savannah, the source answered, "Just because we have an incompetent lead doesn't mean that we don't care. That we don't want Nancy to be brought home safely and that we're not with her in this. We are completely with her and her family on this."

The home of Nancy Guthrie near Tucson, Ariz.

Justin Sullivan/Getty

NewsNation had teased that it would deliver a "bombshell" in the Nancy Guthrie case in the April 2 report from correspondent Brian Entin.

A spokesperson for the Pima County Sheriff's Office reached by * *said "the sheriff is not holding media availability, and there is no additional information to provide at this time."

Nancy's family, including daughter Savannah Guthrie, who's a co-anchor on NBC's morning show staple *Today*, reported Nancy missing when they couldn't locate her on Feb. 1.

Authorities reveal results of new footage found of Nancy Guthrie's home

Biggest takeaways from Savannah Guthrie’s interview about mom's disappearance

The elder Guthrie was last seen on Jan. 31 at her home near East Skyline Drive and North Campbell Avenue outside Tucson, Ariz. The sheriff said just days after Nancy's disappearance that he thought she had been abducted, stressing at the time that she was without the medication that she took daily and that she had limited mobility.

"She didn't walk from there," he told CBS News on Feb. 2. "She didn't go willingly."

Over the following weeks, authorities declared the area a crime scene, and all the Guthrie siblings — including Savannah's sister Annie and brother Camron — offered a ransom for information about what happened to their 84-year-old mother.

Observers have complained that local law enforcement should have turned the investigation over to the FBI, arguing that the agency has more experience with kidnappings and more resources to put toward such a high-profile case.

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Savannah took leave from her high-profile *Today* job and announced last week that she will return on April 6.

The respected broadcast journalist said it was "hard to imagine" coming back to a show that's "such a place of joy and lightness” when she visited the program for an emotional interview with Hoda Kotb, but she thinks it’s her "purpose."

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Source: “EW News”