Critical errors in Nancy Guthrie missing person investigation in spotlight
In a revealing critique, retired FBI agent Jason Pack has highlighted significant missteps by the Pima County Sheriff’s Department in their handling of Nancy Guthrie’s disappearance. Emphasizing the critical errors from the onset, Pack notes the department’s failure to effectively secure the crime scene, allowing unchecked access to journalists and delivery personnel. Adding to the urgency of the situation, he has delved into newly disclosed ransom notes, which suggest a harrowing timeline in this unresolved abduction case.
In a move reminiscent of historical investigative strategies, authorities recently unveiled two alleged ransom notes related to Guthrie’s case, echoing the tactics that once led to the capture of the infamous Unabomber. This decision, six months from the event, is a strategic bid to unearth new tips and perhaps propel the investigation forward in Tucson, Arizona, where Guthrie was last seen.
“It’s a rare decision for law enforcement to make an offender’s own words public,” explained Lisa Miller, a retired investigator formerly with the Colorado Attorney General’s Office.
Though Miller isn’t involved in the Guthrie case, she has been monitoring it attentively for half a year, intrigued by its developments and the law enforcement strategies at play.
Nancy Guthrie vanished from her residence in Tucson in the early hours of February 1st, with police treating her disappearance as a suspected kidnapping. This case continues to unfold under public scrutiny and intense investigative efforts. (Fox Flight Team; Courtesy of NBC)
“The last major precedent: 1995, the Unabomber manifesto…published on the FBI’s recommendation, betting someone would recognize the writing,” she noted in an X post over the weekend. “It worked.”
David Kaczynski and his wife, Linda Patrik, recognized Ted Kaczynski’s writing style and alerted authorities. Ted Kaczynski was arrested in 1996 and pleaded guilty two years later to avoid the death penalty. He spent most of his time behind bars at the ADX Florence Supermax prison in Colorado.
According to FBI records, Kaczynski sent a 35,000-word manifesto outlining his motives “and views of the ills of modern society.”
Then-FBI Director Louis Freeh and then-U.S. Attorney General Janet Reno signed off on a plan to publish the document. After it ran in national news, the task force investigating that case received thousands of tips — including a note from David Kaczynski, who included other writing samples that linguistic analysts used to compare against the manifesto.
On Friday, the Pima County Sheriff’s Department released two notes that have been deemed potentially credible in the abduction of the 84-year-old mother of “Today” co-host Savannah Guthrie.
Authorities said the two notes share a “unique linguistic style” and are believed to have been sent by the same person.
Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos, left, said there is “nothing to indicate” a recent Tucson home invasion and sexual assault is connected to the disappearance of Nancy Guthrie. At right is an image released by the FBI showing a masked person seen outside Guthrie’s Tucson-area home before she vanished. (Reuters ; FBI)
“There are a number of pieces of information in these notes that just might jar someone to say, ‘You know, I’ve heard that,’ or the wording, the style of the writing,” Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos said in a video posted to X Saturday. “We hope that by releasing the actual note, we’ll get some response from the community.”
They are much shorter than the Unabomber’s lengthy essay and less useful for linguistics analysis, Miller said, but they still contain clues and consistent phrasing that could stand out to someone who knows the writer.
WATCH: Nancy Guthrie’s Nest doorbell cam records masked suspect
The clearest habit appears to be the sender’s tendency to write a statement and then immediately follow it with a comma-spliced reinforcing statement, she said.
For example, she gave the following lines:
“You will not be able to contact me from here on out, there will be no negotiation.”
“We never intended to hurt her, that was not our intention.”
Police officers bring Theodore Kaczynski, aka the Unabomber, to court for arraignment. Kaczynski later pleaded guilty to the mail bomb attacks that killed three people and injured 23. (Ralf-Finn Hestoft/CORBIS/Corbis via Getty Images )
Miller said she doesn’t believe the notes were written by artificial intelligence. The notes include “uneven grammar and syntax,” emotionally charged repetitions and awkward phrasing, she said.
Authorities are looking for help identifying the masked intruder who appeared on Guthrie’s Nest doorbell camera on the night of her abduction as well as the sender of the notes.
Anyone with information in the case is asked to dial 1-800-CALL-FBI or, to remain anonymous, call 520-88-CRIME.
The sum of all rewards in the case is over $1.2 million. The money remained unclaimed as of Friday, a day before the six-month mark since Guthrie’s kidnapping.