Guthrie Case Escalates & Epstein Haunts UK Elite | 2.11.26

Summary

Morning Wire – Episode Summary

Podcast: Morning Wire
Episode: Guthrie Case Escalates & Epstein Haunts UK Elite | 2.11.26
Air Date: February 11, 2026
Hosts: John Bickley, Georgia Howell

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Episode Overview

This episode delivers updates on three major stories:

• A significant development in the ongoing search for Nancy Guthrie.
• Heated debates in Congress over ICE operations and immigration enforcement.
• Explosive fallout in the UK following the release of Epstein files, affecting both the monarchy and the prime minister.

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1. The Nancy Guthrie Case: Breakthrough and New Leads

Key Points:

• Major Breakthrough: The FBI has released doorbell camera footage of a suspect tied to the Nancy Guthrie disappearance, and a person of interest has been detained after a traffic stop near the Mexico border.
  (02:00–03:00)
• Details on Detainment & Investigation:
  • The individual was stopped in Rio Rico, Arizona (12 miles from the Mexico border) and taken to Pima County for questioning.
  • A court-ordered search is underway in connection to this case.
  • No formal charges; Nancy Guthrie still missing after 11 days.
• Ransom Note Update:
  • Activity noted on the bitcoin wallet connected to a previous $6 million ransom demand that went unfulfilled. The wallet contained less than $300, with no credibility attached to the ransom note so far.
  • Doorbell camera footage provides the clearest look yet at a male suspect: mustache visible under a ski mask, gloves, a gun in a holster, a distinctive backpack, and notably, his walk.
    (03:00–05:30)
• Importance of Public Help:
  • FBI Director Cash Patel urges the public to study the suspect’s walk, backpack, clothing, and to call with tips.
  • The delay in releasing footage is explained: Nancy Guthrie had no Nest subscription, requiring law enforcement to partner with Google for access.
  • Once obtained, footage led to rapid law enforcement action across the Tucson area, including SWAT deployment.
    (05:30–06:50)
• Family Response:
  • Savannah Guthrie maintains hope that Nancy is alive, encourages public involvement.
  • Lyndon Blake continues in-depth coverage on the series "Finding Nancy Guthrie."
  • Law enforcement is intensifying their presence and search efforts.

Memorable Quotes:

• “You could clearly see this armed intruder… If you look closely, you can see a mustache that looks to appear underneath the ski mask.”
  — Lyndon Blake (04:20)
• “She [Savannah Guthrie] believes her mom’s still alive… She said that her goal is, of course, to bring her mother home.”
  — Lyndon Blake (06:10)

Timestamps:

• [02:00] – FBI releases video; suspect detained near border
• [03:30] – Details about doorbell cam footage and ransom note
• [06:10] – Savannah Guthrie’s statement and SWAT activity

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2. Capitol Hill Hearing: Immigration Chiefs Under Fire

Key Points:

• Combative Testimony: Tense exchanges between Democrats and Trump-era immigration officials at the House Homeland Security Committee hearing.
  • ICE Chief Todd Lyons faces accusations of “Gestapo” tactics and Nazi comparisons.
  • Rep. Dan Goldman (NY) and Congresswoman Lamonica McIver (who’s under federal indictment) target Lyons with pointed and personal questions.
    (07:52–09:35)
• Notable Exchanges:
  • Rep. McIver’s line of questioning gets personal:

    McIver: “Mr. Lyons, do you consider yourself a religious man?”
    Lyons: “Yes, ma’am.”
    McIver: “Well, how do you think Judgment Day will work for you with so much blood on your hands?”
    Lyons: “I'm not going to entertain that question.”
    — (09:23–09:35)

  • Democrats repeatedly question the morality of ICE’s operations.
• ICE Data and Media Critique:
  • CBS reported only 14% of ICE arrests involved violent criminals, but Lyons explains this is misleading.
  • The “14%” excludes non-violent but severe crimes like drug trafficking, child pornography, and human smuggling. Per DHS, 70% of those arrested have criminal charges or convictions.
  • Example: An Uzbek national labeled “nonviolent” had an outstanding foreign warrant for terrorism, demonstrating the limitations of the “violent” metric.
    (09:35–11:40)
• Ongoing Investigations:
  • Committee covers the fatal shootings of anti-ICE activists in Minneapolis, asserting agents followed deadly force standards, with several investigations ongoing.

Memorable Quotes:

• “People are simply making valid observations about your tactics, which are un-American and outright fascist.”
  — House Democrat (08:50)
• “It’s really not 14% here. That's the important number. It's 70%.”
  — Todd Lyons (11:35)
• “How do you think Judgment Day will work for you with so much blood on your hands?”
  — Rep. McIver (09:30)

Timestamps:

• [07:52] – Hearing introduction and tone set
• [09:23] – “Judgment Day” exchange between Lyons & McIver
• [10:10] – ICE data clarification; “worst of the worst” debate

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3. Epstein Files Rock the UK Elite

Key Points:

• King Charles & The Royal Family:

  • For the first time, King Charles signals willingness to cooperate with police in their investigation of Prince Andrew’s Epstein connections.
    (12:51–14:19)
  • Prince Andrew’s proximity to the Epstein scandal—along with ex-wife Sarah Ferguson—have cast a shadow over the monarchy.
  • The royal family’s future is described as “precarious.”

• Prime Minister’s Crisis:

  • Labour Prime Minister Keir Starmer faces fierce criticism over his choice of Peter Mandelson as UK ambassador to the US.
    (14:19–16:38)
  • Mandelson’s close ties to Epstein, including photo evidence and email leaks (sharing privileged info during the 2008 bank bailout), are potentially criminal and have forced Mandelson to resign and go off-grid.
  • Political insiders express shock at the appointment, questioning Starmer’s judgment, with public confidence shaken.
  • New appointment: Sir Christian Turner, a non-political civil servant, replaces Mandelson.

Memorable Quotes:

• “Some of their interactions with Epstein just display them as being greedy, opportunistic, really having no moral compass whatsoever.”
  — Bev Turner (13:07)
• “I mean, we know that the links between him [Mandelson] and Epstein were incredibly tight... He stepped down, gave up his title, lost his position. And of course, questions are asked about the Prime Minister. How could you have given this man such a plum role?”
  — Bev Turner (15:00)
• “As long as you’re not friends with someone who’s friends with a pedophile, you’re going to do better than the last guy, apparently.”
  — Bev Turner, to the new ambassador, Sir Christian Turner (16:28)

Timestamps:

• [12:51] – Epstein Files and UK Royal fallout
• [13:20] – King Charles’ cooperation with police
• [14:19] – Mandelson scandal and government response
• [16:28] – New ambassador’s appointment

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Notable Moments & Quotes

• On the Guthrie investigation:

  “They have some leads down there south of Tucson… and there is still no sign as of now of Nancy Guthrie. So the search is still for the 84-year-old entering now day 11 of this search.”
  — Lyndon Blake (02:48)

• On ICE tactics:

  “It’s really not 14% here. That’s the important number. It’s 70%.”
  — Todd Lyons (11:35)

• On UK’s Epstein scandal:

  “Potentially could lead to life sentence in prison. Mandelson has now gone off grid. He stepped down, gave up his title, lost his position.”
  — Bev Turner (15:28)

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Episode Flow & Tone

The discussion is lively, sharp, and direct, with strong opinions presented from both reporters and guests. The tone matches the urgent, high-stakes nature of unfolding crime and political scandals.

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Useful for Listeners Who Missed the Episode:

This episode covers new investigative developments (with real-time crime updates), offers in-depth political context around US immigration and UK government crises, and features expert, deeply-sourced reporting. Listeners will understand both the facts and the emotional stakes of each situation, from a family’s hope in the Guthrie case to the deep political turmoil in the UK.

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End of Summary.

Transcript

[John Mickley]

A major breakthrough in the search for Nancy Guthrie.

[Lyndon Blake]

There's been a person detained for questioning in relation to the Nancy Guthrie case.

[John Mickley]

I'm Daily Wire executive editor John Mickley with Georgia Howell. It's Wednesday, February 11th. This is Morning Wire.

[Georgia Howell]

A fiery hearing on Capitol Hill pits Democrats against Trump's top immigration chiefs.

[Todd Lyons]

Do you think you're going to hell, Mr. Lyons?

[John Mickley]

I'm not gonna end for of course. And the Epstein files. Fallout rattles the UK as King Charles agrees to work with police investigating his brother while the prime minister digs in amid pressure to resign.

[Bev Turner]

This potential bomb was coming over the horizon for the prime Minister. I don't know how he thought he could get away with it.

[Georgia Howell]

Thanks for waking up with Morning wire.

[Todd Lyons]

Stay tuned.

[Georgia Howell]

We have the news you need to know.

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[John Mickley]

The FBI provided a major breakthrough on Tuesday, releasing video footage of a potential suspect in the case of Nancy Guthrie.

[Georgia Howell]

Joining us now to discuss is Daily Wire reporter Lyndon Blake. So, Lyndon, we got a huge breakthrough in this case late last night. Can you tell us what's the latest?

[Lyndon Blake]

Yes. So much happened after we got that doorbell camera video from Nancy Guthrie's front porch on Tuesday. A rapidly developing situation. But I can tell you right now is as of Tuesday night, they have Det. A person for questioning in relation to the Nancy Guthrie case. And now we can tell you that this person was detained during a traffic stop in Rio Rico, Arizona. This is about 12 miles north of the Mexico border. And this traffic stop happened. The person was then taken back to Pima County. And now we know there's a court ordered search at a location in Rio Rico that is also in in relation to the Nancy Guthrie case. So they have some leads down there south of Tucson where all this happened and Rio Rico that they are digging through and following leads in this case that is obviously related to the person that was brought in for questioning. And I want to be clear that the person is being questioned right now. There's not any formal charges or anything like that. And there is still no sign as of now of Nancy Guthrie. So the search is still for the 84 year old entering now day 11 of this search. Another big development that happened Tuesday night was there was activity on the bitcoin account that was associated with that first ransom note that went to three news outlets. KGUN was one of the two local stations that got the ransom note in addition to TMZ and the local Tucson station said that the amount in the bitcoin wallet was less than $300. But still a big development after that Monday evening deadline for the $6 million in Bitcoin passed in regards to the Nancy Guth ransom note. Still no legitimacy tied to those notes. Again, just another development in this case. But all these big breaks did happen. After you see this person on video and photos from this doorbell camera, you could clearly see this armed intruder that was tampering with the doorbell camera at Nancy Guthrie's house. And we're going to break down that video. If you look closely, you can see a mustache that looks to appear underneath the ski mask. Again, right there towards his left hand, you, there's a gun and some type of holster there. In the two images, he's looking directly at the doorbell camera. We're saying he. It appears to be a male. And you can get a really good look at his eyes in those images. You see the way this person walks. You see them walk up to the doorbell camera and first have their fists that have gloves on it, trying to cover it up. And then that's not working. So then you see the person turn around, you see what type of backpack the person is wearing. He goes back towards the archway in front of Nancy Guthrie's house and picks up some type of grass, some ve tries to go cover up the camera with it again. But all this to say clear video where you can pick up on the way the Person walks, the clothing, the shoes, all these signs. And that's what FBI director Cash Patel says he wants the public to start looking at is, do you recognize this person? Do you recognize the way this person walks? Do you recognize the backpack? Any clues that could help solve this case? And one of the biggest questions after this footage came out was why did it take so long to get this footage? Cash Patel in the post that he said it took eight days. But we know that there was no subscription on Nancy Guthrie's Nest camera, so they had to work with private sectors. We now know that was Google to go back in the database to retrieve this footage that was never actually stored on the device. And reports said after the footage was released that Tuesday was the first day that authorities got that footage, too. So as soon as they got the footage off the server, they were able to give that to the public. And again, that led to these rapid development. We did hear from Savannah Guthrie after this footage was released from her mom's doorbell camera. She said she believes her mom's still alive. She says she believes she is still out there. She wants people to look at the photos and videos and recognize who is in it. She said that her goal is, of course, to bring her mother home. And she reminds people if they have any information, to call 1-800- call FBI. So even after seeing this footage, she still has hopes that her mother's alive and they want to bring Nancy home. Another thing that happened on Tuesday evening was there were reports that SWAT vehicles were deployed from the sheriff's office that were heading towards something to do with the Nancy Guthrie case. We don't know where they were going, but again, just an uptick in activity on the ground in Annie Guthrie's neighborhood, as well as more law enforcement presence going out into the field, doing things related to this case. Again, all happening after that footage from the armed intruder on Nancy's front doorsteps went public.

[Georgia Howell]

And you are going to be continuing to report on this, correct?

[Lyndon Blake]

Yeah, we're looking at this case closely on the series Finding Nancy Guthrie. We're taking a deep dive into this investigation following this horrible crime.

[Georgia Howell]

And if there's a break in the case, we're going to drop it on this feed as well. Lyndon, thank you.

[Lyndon Blake]

Thanks, guys.

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[Georgia Howell]

A combative hearing on Capitol Hill Tuesday had Democrats sparring with the Trump administration's top immigration officials.

[John Mickley]

Daily Wire immigration reporter Jenny Terre watched it all for us and joins us now. Hey, Jenny. So lots of intense exchanges over the Trump administration's mass deportation campaign, as expected. What were some of the highlights from yesterday's hearing?

[Todd Lyons]

Yeah, so you had the House Homeland Security Committee holding a hearing with the ICE chief in light of all of the uptick in violence against ICE officers. And of course, Democrats use this as a moment to really go after them, continuing to call them things like the Gestapo, comparing them to Nazis. So in the first instance, we had Rep. Dan Goldman from New York who went after the ICE chief. That's Todd Lyons saying that again, ICE is the Gestapo. He compared them to Nazi Germany. Listen to what that exchange went like.

[John Mickley]

Actually, it's Holocaust museum claiming my time.

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If you want claiming my time, Mr. Chairman. People are simply making valid observations about your tactics, which are un American and outright fascist.

[Todd Lyons]

Then you had Congresswoman Lamonica McIver, who We should note is also under a federal indictment for allegedly assaulting ICE officers. When she tried to force her way into an ICE detention center in New Jersey a few months back. She asked some questions of the ICE director about his religious beliefs. Mr. Lyons, do you consider yourself a religious man?

[John Mickley]

Yes, ma'. Am.

[Todd Lyons]

Oh, yes. Okay. Well, how do you think Judgment Day will work for you with so much blood on your hands?

[John Mickley]

I'm not going to entertain that question.

[Todd Lyons]

Oh, okay. Of course not.

[John Mickley]

Things definitely getting heated there. Now, Lyons was also questioned about a recent CBS report that said that 14% of those arrested by ICE have violent criminal records. What can you tell us about that?

[Todd Lyons]

Right, so the mainstream media has been going after ICE and the Trump administration for saying that they're going after the worst of the worst and really trying to pour cold water on that. But this report is very misleading because it's suggesting, like you said, 14% have violent crimes. These are the people that ICE is arresting. What it fails to really show, though, is what the Department of Homeland Security has since come out and said, which is that those with nonviolent crimes are not counted in this. And that includes people who are drug traffickers, who distribute child porn, solicitation of a minor, human smuggling and then on top of that, there's this other statistic that's really important here, which is that 70% of those who are taken by ICE either have a charge or a criminal conviction. So these are really the important stats that show who ICE is arresting. Now, who's left out of that 14% number in addition to those nonviolent crimes that we just laid out? Well, we can talk about this case of an Uzbek national who was recently pulled over. He was driving a commercial truck and authorities found that he had a warrant out of his home country for terrorism charges. He actually crossed the border under the Biden administration. He was quote, unquote, vetted and released. And the warrant actually existed before that. Now what is the warrant for exactly? It's for allegedly distributing terrorist propaganda and calling for jihad online and recruiting fellow terrorists. So this is someone who's considered one of those quote, unquote, nonviolent criminals. So it's really not 14% here. That's the important number. It's 70%. And that's what the American people really voted for when it came to the last election and wanted, you know, the Trump administration to carry out this mass deportation effort and get these really bad people off the streets.

[John Mickley]

Indeed. And when you look at specific charges listed there, pretty shocking stuff. Now with the leaders of ICE and CBP in front of Congress, did we get any updates on the investigation into the fatal shootings of the two anti ICE activists in Minneapolis?

[Todd Lyons]

Right, so Minneapolis did definitely come up. They stood by their officers and agents saying that the use of deadly force standards were followed in both of those incidents when it came to the Renee Goode shooting and Alex Preddy. So we'll continue to monitor all of those developments with the investigations. They also said that there's others that are ongoing into other use of force incidents.

[John Mickley]

It was certainly very interested in seeing the findings of that and I'm sure there will be a lot of fallout either way. Jenny, thank you so much for joining us.

[Todd Lyons]

Thank you.

[Georgia Howell]

The release of the Jeffrey Epstein files has sparked a firestorm in the UK where British Prime Minister Keir Starmer is embroiled in a scandal involving their ambassador to the US While King Charles says he's ready to support the British police looking into his brother Andrew.

[John Mickley]

Joining us now to discuss is Bev Turner, host of GB News, the Late Show Live. Bev, first of all, welcome to Morning Wire. Thank you for joining us.

[Bev Turner]

My pleasure.

[John Mickley]

So we've seen here in the US The Epstein scandal continue to have a lot of fallout in the UK there's some really pretty seismic things that are happening all the way at the top, including the King himself. Let's start there. There's news this week that he's going to be working with police in their investigation into his brother. Can you unpack what's actually happening there?

[Bev Turner]

So the Royal Family have been very quiet on the Epstein scandal, despite the fact that the King's brother Andrew, until recently Prince Andrew, is so closely related to the Epstein island events. He's all over the Epstein files with his now ex wife, Sarah Ferguson, famously Fergie in the 90s, early 2000s, the redhead. Everyone remembers right, some of their interactions with Epstein just display them as being greedy, opportunistic, really having no moral compass whatsoever. So that inevitably reflects badly on the Royal family because Andrew was apparently the Queen's favorite son. Now his brother is King and this was unprecedented when this week King Charles said, we will cooperate with the police if necessary. And the Royal Family are in. You know, their future is never certain in the uk, but at the moment it feels very precarious indeed.

[John Mickley]

Now, the sharing of confidential information is at the heart of this and some other accusations related to the Prime Minister. What is going on with that situation? How much do we actually know at this point?

[Bev Turner]

We elected a Labor government about 20 months ago now with Sir Keir Starmer as the leader. They won a pretty significant majority, a very significant majority of seats in the House of Commons without actually a huge percentage of the votes. It's just a sort of characteristic of our political system. Now, as part of that administration, one of the most significant positions is of course, the British Ambassador to America six months ago, maybe less, Peter Mandelson, Lord Peter Mandelson was given that job here in D.C. to gasps of shock from anybody within the media and anybody that knew anything about politics, because it was so obvious that coming down the line was going to be the Epstein files. And one of the few photos we already had that didn't need to be released was Epstein and Mandelson on holiday in the Caribbean. I mean, we know that the links between him and Epstein were incredibly tight. And so now that we know the full implications of Mandelston's and his relationship with Epstein, as you say there, John, about giving away private policy information. In 2008 crash, Mandelson was emailing Epstein saying, I'm just leaving Downing Street, I'll give you a call to tell you what we're doing about bailing out the banks. That's potentially extremely criminal activity, potentially could lead to life sentence in prison. Mandela has now gone off grid. He stepped down, gave up his title, lost his position. And of course, questions are asked about the prime Minister. How could you have given this man such a plum role? It appears that the Prime Minister is clinging on for dear life. But the fact that the prime Minister is there still today leaves a lot of questions to be answered about his judgments in appointing Mandelson. How did he think that was okay? I met the new ambassador last night. I was in the ambassador's residence. They've appointed a civil servant, a non political position. Sir Christian Turner. It is. And the first thing I said to him was, well, as long as you're not friends with someone who's friends with a pedophile, you're going to do better than the last guy, apparently.

[John Mickley]

Easier said than done as you've laid out a real mess over in the UK and things are looking particularly grim for the Labor Party. Bev, thank you so much for talking with us. We'd love to have you back on the show again.

[Bev Turner]

Love to. Thank you.

[Georgia Howell]

Thanks for waking up with us. And if you're listening to the show now, you can watch for free on Daily Wire. Plus, we'll be back later this evening with more news you need to know.