Volunteers scoured the desert near Tucson, Arizona, on Sunday for Nancy Guthrie, the mother of “Today” show host Savannah Guthrie, defying an explicit request from the Pima County Sheriff’s Department to stop. Guthrie, 84, has been missing since Jan. 31, and authorities believe she was kidnapped from her home.
The case illustrates a persistent tension in missing-person investigations: community members often want to help search, but law enforcement agencies say untrained volunteers can contaminate crime scenes and interfere with professional work. The sheriff’s department said it “appreciates the concern for Nancy Guthrie” but asks searchers to “give investigators space to do their jobs.”
Nancy Guthrie, the mother of “Today” show host Savannah Guthrie, disappeared from her Arizona home on Jan. 31. Authorities believe she was kidnapped. Nearly three weeks later, volunteers scour the desert near Tucson despite law enforcement’s explicit request that they stop.
The Pima County Sheriff’s Department said on the weekend that while it appreciates the concern, the search effort should be left to professionals. “We all want to find Nancy, but this work is best left to professionals,” the agency said in a statement.
Guthrie, 84, was last seen at her home just outside Tucson on Jan. 31 and reported missing the following day. Authorities found drops of her blood on the front porch. The FBI released surveillance video showing a masked person at her home the night she disappeared, but authorities have released little additional evidence publicly.
Despite the sheriff’s request, volunteers have continued searching the desert. A small group reported finding a black backpack on Sunday, though it was not the brand shown in video footage of a masked person at Guthrie’s home. A sheriff’s spokesperson told a Tucson television station the bag and its contents did not appear to be viable leads.
Mexican volunteers join search
Among those joining the search are members of Madres Buscadoras de Sonora, “Searching Mothers of Sonora,” a group founded by Mexican women who search for missing people. Lupita Tello, who joined the organization after her son disappeared in Mexico in 2020, said Monday that she and two other volunteers plan to continue posting flyers on bus stops and utility poles near Nancy Guthrie’s home and in Nogales, Mexico.
The group was contacted by a friend of one of Nancy Guthrie’s daughters who asked for help because of their expertise, Tello said. Madres Buscadoras has found the remains of more than 5,000 people in Mexico since it was founded 10 years ago by mothers with missing children.
“We know the soil. We know when someone has dug deep or when there is a shallow grave,” Tello said in an interview. “We hope we can help because we understand the pain of having a missing relative.”
Members of the group have received training from Mexican forensic experts on proper search techniques, she said.
Law enforcement perspective
Tony Estrada, former long-time sheriff in neighboring Santa Cruz County, said volunteer searchers often mean well, but their efforts must be coordinated with law enforcement.
“You can’t have people all over the place looking for something and not reporting to anybody or letting them know that they’re going to be in that area,” Estrada said. “They may be trampling into things that may come out to be helpful in the future.”
Chris Boyer, executive director of the National Association for Search and Rescue, said untrained volunteers risk contaminating evidence. “It’s painful for law enforcement when that happens,” he said.
Boyer said volunteers should undergo background checks, receive training in first aid and crime-scene preservation, and work under law enforcement supervision. Nearly all search operations for U.S. law enforcement agencies rely on volunteers, he noted, but proper coordination is essential.
Investigation scope and response
Several hundred people are working the investigation, and the sheriff’s office has received more than 20,000 tips. The FBI and other agencies are assisting. The sheriff’s department has stationed personnel at Guthrie’s house around the clock and enacted a temporary one-way traffic flow on the road to allow emergency and trash collection vehicles to pass.
The constant presence of news crews, journalists, and curious onlookers has drawn mixed reactions from neighbors. Some appreciate the attention the case has received. Others have placed traffic cones and signs on their properties to keep people away.
A makeshift memorial continues to grow outside Guthrie’s home, with flowers, yellow ribbons, crosses, and statuettes of patron saints and angels. Neighbors have left signs expressing support for Guthrie’s family.