Loading summary
Transcript17 lines
- [00:00]
Howard Mackler
I'm Howard Mackler. I spent my career building companies that help businesses solve problems. Now I built super sure because I think business insurance is broken. Some brokers hand you a policy, collect their commission and disappear until renewal. Your business runs all year and so are the gaps and the risks for companies with 25 or more employees. Whether you're the owner, CFO or HR manager, super sure is built for you. We're licensed in all 50 states covering business, insurance and employee benefits. We with year round support for you and your team. You can go to supershore.com and use the Fine Print Facts tool which translates your current policy into plain English so you see what's covered and what's not. The business value calculator helps you estimate what your company is worth so you know what actually needs protecting. Go to super sure.com all your policies in one place. Go to super sure.com that's supersure.com you can thank me later. Paid for by Super Sure Insurance Agency, LLC, a licensed insurance agency.
- [00:59]
Pray.com Narrator
What if a few minutes with God could change the direction of your entire Day? With pray.com you can begin each morning with powerful daily prayers, inspiring bible stories and messages created to strengthen your faith. Whether you need peace, encouragement or a fresh start, pray.com helps you make prayer part of your everyday Life. Download the Prey.com app today.
- [01:35]
Lyndon Blake
The biggest reveal yet in the Nancy Guthrie investigation. Tonight, the Pima County Sheriff's office for the first time releasing the two ransom notes that were sent to local news outlets in the days following Nancy Guthrie's abduction on February 1st. What the full context of the ransom notes tells us about the 84 year old's disappearance. Does Savannah Guthrie know who she has addressed in her latest plea for answers for her mother?
- [01:59]
Podcast Co-host
So I'm asking you, begging you to do the right thing now. Make the right choice. Help us find her.
- [02:08]
Lyndon Blake
Where do Pima county investigators go from here as the case passes the six month mark? I'm Lyndon Blake and you're listening to that's so criminal.
- [02:18]
Podcast Co-host
That's so criminal.
- [02:26]
Lyndon Blake
A big piece of evidence has been made public in the case of Nancy Guthrie. First off, how has it been six months since the mother of Today show host Savannah Guthrie was taken from her home in the middle of the night? Nancy Guthrie was last seen in person January 31, 2026, and the investigation into her disappearance started February 1. This has been a case that's been confusing from day one. Who would take an elderly woman from her bed in the middle of the night. And by day two, you have These ransom notes involved. The ransom notes sent to local news stations have been such a mystery. Are they legit? Are they from an opportunist? Experts are divided on this issue. But now the public can see exactly what the Guthrie family saw in that first week of their mother's kidnapping and what the FBI has been looking into ever since. Let's go over that first note that was sent to local news stations and to TMZ. February 2nd, the day after Nancy was reported missing. Pima county released the full note sent to kold, a local station in Tucson. And this note came in the form of a submission to the station, like a news tip. So you go to the station's website and you fill out the message form. So they didn't email the station directly. That's just important to understand because if you've laid eyes on these notes, it looks like just different than a normal email. So I just wanted to make that clarification. In the first note you see, it's addressed to just Savannah. It says hello Savannah. So whoever sent this note knew Nancy was the famous Today show host mother. It has been well known that this ransom note is the one that stated the ransom amount of 6 million in Bitcoin. But I found it interesting both times when talking about the money. First of 4 million and then the second deadline of 6 million it said USD after. This is odd to me because if you think about it, no one here in America says you owe me 5 USD. You just say $5 or you write it out, the dollar sign and the number. But both times when referencing money, it said 4 million USD and then 6 million USD. The note does say that once the 6 million USD is received at the bitcoin address listed, I think that's the part of the note that's redacted that Nancy will be released within 12 hours of the deposit to a safe location back in Tucson. Does that wording back in Tucson confirm that Nancy was taken out of the city? TMZ said early on they think based off the notes they received that Nancy was in a 12 hour radius of Tucson. Yet Harvey Levin drawl 12 hours out in all directions explaining that there was something in the notes that led him to believe she was 12 hours away. Now that we've seen the full context of the notes, we now know that he was Talking about the 12 hours to drop her back off in Tucson. That is why he said that. The note also mentions this seven day deadline. To my knowledge, that hasn't been mentioned. And then the note read this. If the Money isn't received by that final deadline on Monday, February 9, it says in quotes, she will be killed. This is very specific. And the urgency of this deadline makes your scam artist alarm kind of go off. They're trying to hurry up and get this money. So that's also something. When I'm looking at it in its full context, it just seems like, okay, I need the money fast. You don't have much time. Give me the money. It just seems a little scammy. But we know Savannah has said multiple times she tends to believe these notes are real. In the second video the Guthrie family made, they said they were willing to pay the ransom. Investigators, though, still haven't confirmed if that money was ever sent. This first ransom note says Nancy is aware of what's at stake if that money isn't paid. And the note also says that law enforcement will not be able to help you with this. Also, the note refers to the author in a singular sense. It reads, you will not be able to contact me from here on out. There's been that mystery of this investigation. Were there multiple people involved? Is there this single person authoring these ransom notes? There's one indicator in the first ransom note that it is a singular person. And then the first note ends with what has been widely reported, that the note mentioned an apple watch of sorts and a damaged floodlight outside. The note said that Nancy had a white smartwatch on the floor of the foot of her bed, and that white floodlight in the backyard was destroyed. When Pima county investigators released the two ransom notes at the same time. They also mentioned in the news release that the photos of the person on the front porch back from the beginning of the investigation may have come from two different nights. That's an interesting point they made while releasing the ransom notes, because it makes you wonder, did the sender of this note have prior knowledge of the floodlight and the smartwatch at the foot of her bed? Was there some way the person, if they came there before the night of January 31st into the morning hours of February 1st, did they notice the floodlight before? Could they see through the window of the bedroom and see a watch? This is important because at the time that this first ransom note was sent, the details were not known to the public. These details have been described by people who read the initial notes as something only the kidnapper would know.
- [07:57]
Podcast Co-host
There are a lot of different notes, I think, that came, and I think most of them, it's my understanding, are not real, and I didn't see them. But you Know, a person that would send a fake ransom note really has to look deeply at themselves. Yeah. To a family in pain. But I believe the two notes that we received that we responded to, I tend to believe those are real.
- [08:37]
Lyndon Blake
So let's get our timeline in order. The first ransom note was sent on Monday, February 2nd. The Apple Watch wasn't confirmed to be left behind by investigators until the next day, February 3rd. So this note had some legitimacy to it. And that's why I believe that the family responded to it publicly on Savannah's Instagram, February 4th.
- [08:58]
Podcast Co-host
That's so criminal.
- [09:03]
Lyndon Blake
Still ahead, we dive into the second ransom note and share the eerie details described by the authority. Now, to the next ransom note. That note was sent February 6th to the same station as the first one. From the top. This ransom note already looks different because instead of just being addressed to Savannah, this one is addressed to the Guthrie family. It says, we did not fully grasp the seriousness of Nancy's physical condition. Now, by this point, February 6th, the public knows that Nancy had heart issues. She couldn't walk far on her own. This is important to know when you're thinking about what this person who wrote this note may or may not have gathered from watching the news coverage of this investigation. The note continues, we never intended to hurt her. That was not our intention. She perished shortly after she was taken. So based on the date when this Note was sent, February 6th, this author is saying Nancy is dead within that first week of her going missing. Then the note went on to say they believe it was heart related. And this is the weird line that has been talked about over the last several months. The note reads, she is buried in nature. Now, nothing you could have done could have changed the outcome. And this is where the tone really shifts from that threatening tone in the first ransom note. This note wraps up saying, we want your family to know this and hope you can all find peace. We are truly sorry. Now, before the notes were released, there had been reports that the note had this apologetic tone, but reading was an apology. The author of this letter apologized for Nancy dying. And that's just a completely different tune from that first note where the author says, if I don't get this $6 million in Bitcoin, I'm killing Nancy. I just find it hard to believe that this author really thought there'd be a different outcome than a bad one. It's hard for me to believe that the person writing this note thought by taking a frail 84 year old woman in the middle of the night, startling her, that this would End well, let's say the person that's authoring these two ransom notes is just an opportunist, that this person has nothing to do with the investigation. Did the author freak out after how much media attention the first note got and this case got in general? I mean, remember, this turned into the biggest case in America. And after seeing how much attention, how every news cycle was dominated by Nancy Guthrie coverage, did the author freak out, write, sorry, she's dead. I hope you have peace and I hope you forget that this ever happened and I'm not involved. I don't know. But it's an odd change in tone from this very demanding, your mother's life is in your hands and now we never meant to kill her. I'm so sorry. I hope you find peace. But those are the two ransom notes. And now the public can see what they've seen behind the scenes for months. And we'll get into the reason why at this point, at the six month mark, I think that they decided to finally make these public. But first, let's get to the state of the DNA that was found inside Nancy's home. This is where we are in that DNA processing right now. Chris Nanos, the Pima county sheriff who is still under so much fire for so many different reasons regarding this investigation, recently did an interview with abc. He said the DNA is being tested at multiple labs now.
- [12:54]
Howard Mackler
I think the hair analysis was done and there was nothing that leaves a mixed sample of DNA as the only potential piece of biological evidence left. The sheriff said they're working to untangle a mix of DNA from as many as four people. My understanding is there's at least five, maybe six labs across the country that are working on all of this and they are using genetic genealogy.
- [13:17]
Lyndon Blake
So obviously it's no secret. The DNA analysis part of this investigation has just seem to have dragged on for a while. And now we know that it's because that mixed DNA sample, which is the only biological evidence left, apparently is from at least four people, according to Nano. So now they are sorting through that DNA still, and Sheriff Nano says that there's upwards of six labs working on it. And that goes back to the debate. Why did Pima county not send the DNA straight to Quantico? Why did they send it to a private lab in Florida? Now we don't even know why, what all labs are working on it. But this is one of the reasons why Chris Nanos has been criticized so much of the way he's handled the investigation from the beginning. Nanos gave us Some more insight on a suspect or suspects. He said that he's not ready to say it is just one guy responsible. And looking at that front step footage, you can tell that the person is a man. And Nanos noted that even though people have been cleared in this investigation to this point, they can come up again based on new evidence that is found. So before the news dump Friday, Savannah did put out another video last week.
- [14:31]
Podcast Co-host
The world can be a cruel and unforgiving place. And I know that you have tried to do things the right way. So I'm asking you, begging you, to do the right thing now. Make the right choice. Help us find her, tell us where to look for her.
- [14:50]
Lyndon Blake
Savannah, to me seemed like she is addressing the author of that ransom note when she says, I know you have tried to do things the right way. I'm wondering if there's been any more communication that the public doesn't know of. That's 100% possible. But I think she is still zoned in on these two specific notes that she thinks are real, like she said back in March to Hoda when she did that first big sit down interview. And Savannah is trying once again to get the information out on this specific person and trying to speak directly to whoever wrote these notes. And based on her latest Instagram video, and she sounded like this before in previous Instagram videos, it seems she is so desperate to find answers, she doesn't even care if this person is ever publicly identified or charged or even brought to justice. She just wants to know where her mother is, how they can find closure to this horrible situation. When she's making these videos, even though it's been six months, you can see the pain still in her eyes. And she said it. Even though she seems to be okay during the Today show, she cries in the morning. She cries at night. She has to pull herself together in commercial breaks. She wants to go about her life as normal as possible. But they are still living a nightmare.
- [16:12]
Podcast Co-host
That's so criminal.
- [16:15]
Lyndon Blake
Now investigators are hoping someone can pick up on the ransom note writing style. As we mentioned, it's pretty unusual. They want people to go back to their memories from six months ago and see if they notice someone that looks like that masked man on the front porch. And if you know someone that you think resembles this man that was caught on that surveillance video, the investigators are asking, is that person in your life acting different? Were they acting different around the time of Nancy's disappearance? Were they cleaning their car? Were they seeming super invested in this case or maybe super disinterested? And didn't want to talk about it, which, as you know, at the time, was odd behavior. Because this case was the most talked about story in America. It's important to note that relationships change, people change, circumstances change. Someone may have been close to the person on that front step six months ago, and now they're not anymore. And that's why investigators are trying to rack the brains of anyone that may know something about what happened to Nancy Guthrie. As it's hit the sixth month mark, the reward is still available. It is still over a million dollars for information leading to Nancy Guthrie. The tip line is 1-800- call FBI. And they want to hear from someone that knows something. I'm Lyndon Blake, and you've been listening to that's so criminal.