Nancy Guthrie was abducted, likely in the middle of the night, Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos told the Arizona Daily Star late Monday.
Investigators found signs of forced entry at the home, Associated Press reported Tuesday, citing a source.
Nanos refused to confirm or deny an NBC News report Monday night that quoted him as saying Guthrie was harmed when she was taken against her will from her Tucson home.
NBC News quoted Nanos as saying about the 84-year-old mother of NBC Today Show host Savannah Guthrie: “We know she was harmed at the home, but we don’t know to what extent."
"If I said that, I misspoke or something," the sheriff told the Star in an interview. "If NBC came back for confirmation now, I wouldn't give it." Pressed on the issue, Nanos told the Star, "I'm not going to deny it. I'm not going to go there with you. I'm not going to speak to that. I'm not confirming or denying."
He said one form of harm he would say she suffered is that, "We know that she is without her meds, and if she doesn't get her meds within 24 hours, that could be fatal."
Asked if there is a person of interest, the sheriff answered, "Not yet," but said investigators are hoping the security cameras inside the home will lead to that.
They have learned that the cameras at the home where Guthries lives alone are not cloud-based, and that the data, which they hope is stored instead on a server, will have to be provided to investigators by the manufacturer. By law, that requires warrants and subpoenas and "will take a little time," he said.
Nanos would not disclose any of the "very concerning" evidence investigators found in Nancy Guthrie's home, but said they have submitted items for DNA testing.
He referred to an "intruder." When asked if there was forced entry to the home, he said investigators aren't talking about that or about whether there was a struggle.
"Our best guess is it occurred during the night while she was sleeping in her bed," the sheriff said of the possible abduction or kidnapping. On Tuesday morning, an NBC news report aired on the Today Show said Nanos was speaking figuratively, rather than alleging Guthrie was physically taken from her bed.
Investigators believe she was driven away in a vehicle, though didn't have evidence of a specific vehicle, Nanos said. They are looking at data from intersection cameras installed by county and city transportation departments, starting in a large swath including areas around Ina Road, River Road from west to east, and spreading out from there. Nanos also mentioned license plate readers and Flock cameras in the Tucson area as potential tools.
"We are working this doggedly. We will find out what happened to Nancy," Nanos vowed.
Asked whether he believes Guthrie is alive, Nanos responded, "I hope she's alive. We'll never give up that hope. I don't want anyone to give up that hope."
Nanos said they do not know if she was targeted because she is Savannah Guthrie’s mother. "We don't know that. We look at all of that, but we just don't know that," he said at a news conference Monday morning.
NBC News reported late Monday that investigators were not aware of threats aimed at Savannah Guthrie after speaking with her.
The sheriff said he does not believe the public is in any danger.
The Catalina Foothills neighborhood of Nancy Guthrie, mother of Today Show host Savannah Guthrie.
The Sheriff's Department set up a tip line QR code late Monday where members of the public can directly submit photos or videos that may be helpful to the investigation.
Nanos also pleaded with the public to call in tips to 9-1-1 or to the Sheriff’s Department at (520) 351-4900 and said he is grateful for all the community help so far. "Detectives remain on scene and are actively following up on all tips as they are received," a department spokeswoman said.
QR code set up by the Pima County Sheriff's Department for members of the public to directly upload any photos or videos they think might help in the investigation of Nancy Guthrie's disappearance.
Nancy Guthrie was last seen about 9:30 or 9:45 p.m. Saturday at her home in the Catalina Foothills, west of North Campbell Avenue and south of East Skyline Drive. She was reported missing by family members about noon on Sunday, after she failed to show up for church service that morning and someone reached out to the family.
In announcing earlier Monday that officials were now investigating the disappearance as a crime, Nanos had said: "We know she just didn't walk out of there," because of her limited mobility at her age. "She couldn't walk 50 yards by herself," he said, adding that she has no cognitive issues and is "sharp as a tack."
Neighbors walk by the home of 84-year-old Nancy Guthrie on Monday as the search for her continues.
He said again that evidence found at her home is of grave concern to investigators, but would not elaborate.
Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos
Investigators have Guthrie's cell phone, he said.
Nanos said she has people who do housekeeping, pool maintenance and landscaping work for her. "I think we've found most everybody" and talked to them to see if they might know anything, Nanos said.
After an extensive search of the area Sunday and all night into Monday "to no avail" by ground teams, drones, dog teams, a helicopter and an airplane using infrared, Nanos said late Monday that they were going back to "see if someone missed something."
After initial processing of evidence at the home, "We don't see this as much as a search mission as we do as a crime scene," he said.
Guthrie is about 5-feet, 5-inches tall and weighs about 150 pounds. She has brown hair and blue eyes. It wasn't known what clothing she might be wearing.
Savannah Guthrie was raised in Tucson and is a University of Arizona graduate. She was in Tucson late last year and filmed segments introducing Today Show viewers to her hometown.
She was not on air Monday and the investigation was the lead news story on Monday's Today Show. Published reports say she has pulled out of covering the winter Olympics for the network, which start Friday.
Nancy Guthrie appeared in a November 2025 story her daughter did about her hometown for the Today Show.
Over a meal, Savannah Guthrie asked her mother what made the family want to plant roots in Tucson in the 1970s.
“It’s so wonderful. Just the air, the quality of life,” Nancy Guthrie said in the segment. “It’s laid back and gentle.”
She said she likes to see the javelinas eat her plants.
Savannah Guthrie
The popular TV host issued a statement Monday:
“On behalf of our family, I want to thank everyone for the thoughts, prayers and messages of support,” Savannah Guthrie said. “Right now, our focus remains on the safe return of our dear mom.
“We thank law enforcement for their hard work on this case and encourage anyone with information to contact the Pima County Sheriff’s Department."
Later, she posted on Instagram: "Please pray."
"we believe in prayer. we believe in voices raised in unison, in love, in hope. we believe in goodness. we believe in humanity. above all, we believe in Him," Savannah Guthrie wrote, using lowercase sentences in a way that emphasized the reverence of her capitalized references to God.
"thank you for lifting your prayers with ours for our beloved mom, our dearest Nancy, a woman of deep conviction, a good and faithful servant. raise your prayers with us and believe with us that she will be lifted by them in this very moment.
"we need you.
“'He will keep in perfect peace those whose hearts are steadfast, trusting in the Lord.' a verse of Isaiah for all time for all of us.
"Bring her home."
Nancy Guthrie, mother of NBC Today host Savannah Guthrie, is shown in this undated photo provided by the Pima County Sheriff's Department. Deputies and volunteers have been searching for her since about noon Sunday.
