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Nancy Guthrie’s sudden disappearance from her residence in the prestigious Catalina Foothills, north of Tucson, Arizona, has left the nation in a state of shock.
At 84 years old, she is the mother of “Today” show co-host Savannah Guthrie and has been a long-time resident of this typically tranquil neighborhood. Crime is not something this area is known for.
However, the city of Tucson presents a stark contrast, even as Pima County records show a decline in crime rates.
Within the city limits, violence is a significant concern, exacerbated by extensive encampments where methamphetamine and other drugs are easily accessible. Criminals are reportedly taking advantage of the city’s free bus system to commit various offenses. This backdrop adds urgency to the ongoing search for Guthrie, now approaching its second week. Surveillance footage showing a masked individual at her doorstep has generated thousands of leads, yet no arrests have been made.
In an interview with Fox News Digital, local entrepreneur Josh Jacobson, who collaborates with the nonprofit Tucson Crime Free Coalition, shared his insights. The organization advocates for sufficient law enforcement resources, support for those in need, and the prosecution of offenders. Although Pima County is generally seen as a “relatively lower crime area,” Jacobson highlights Tucson as the focal point of criminal activity.
General view of a trailer park in Tucson, Arizona, on Sunday, February 8, 2026. (Kat Ramirez for Fox News Digital)
“It’s really the city of Tucson that’s where crime spins out of control, and our deputies are really involved trying to push crime back,” he said.
Encampments containing drug and criminal activity, according to Jacobson, are located about three miles from Guthrie’s home in the Catalina Foothills.
Fox News Digital took photos of the nearby encampments — which contain piles of junk, such as clothes, open containers, boxes, bags and trash.
At the dump site on Thursday, just about three miles from Guthrie’s home, Pima County deputies told Fox News Digital they were investigating property theft in the area. They said their work was not connected to her disappearance.
And with large tracts of government land outside town, there’s plenty of room for more encampments.
As a 2020 COVID relief measure, the city of Tucson implemented fare-free transit, as reported in the Arizona Daily Star. While it sounds like a good idea to its supporters, according to Jacobson, it’s contributed to the spread of crime across Tucson and the county.
“It’s not just drugs, but it’s also organized retail theft. It’s burglaries. It’s theft. It’s assaults,” he said. “There’s been a lot of issues that have come because there’s no accountability on our bus system.”Criminals use the free buses to their advantage, using them as getaway vehicles after robbing a store in the midst of understaffed and under-resourced law enforcement, he told Fox News Digital.
A culvert in an area near Nancy Guthrie’s home in Tucson, Arizona, is packed full of what authorities describe as “stolen stuff” on Thursday, February 12, 2026. (Derek Shook for Fox News Digital)
“Folks will actually time the bus so that they can go into a big box store, steal a bunch of merchandise, run out and jump on the bus right as it’s pulling up,” he said.
The nearest stop to Guthrie’s home is about 2.4 miles away, however, and there’s speculation among experts that she was forced into a vehicle against her will, making the bus routes unlikely in her case.
However, for many residents, calling 911 might mean not seeing an officer for hours, Jacobson said. Nuisance crimes may not even get reported.
Some bus stops are also used as a hub for the distribution of narcotics, with people buying and selling out in the open, in addition to smoking fentanyl or methamphetamines while riding the bus, according to Jacobson.
Tucson is located about 60 miles north of the Mexico-U.S. border. When drugs come across, they first pass through Pima County, before making their way to other parts of the United States, according to Jacobson.
A map outlining various locations in Tucson, Arizona, in the search for Nancy Guthrie. (Fox News)
“Pima County is one of the largest drug trafficking corridors in the state,” he said.
Despite the prevalence of narcotics crimes, Jacobson alleges that Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos does not want to work with other agencies, including Border Patrol and ICE.
In Guthrie’s case, federal law enforcement sources have voiced frustration with his alleged lack of cooperation — telling Fox News Digital he waited two days to bring the FBI into the investigation and later sending key evidence for testing at a private lab in Florida instead of the FBI’s state-of-the-art facility in Virginia.
Meanwhile, as the FBI’s special agent in charge of the Phoenix office was with the Guthrie family recording a video response to a purported ransom demand last week, Nanos attended an NCAA basketball game.