Investigators have traveled from Arizona to Florida to consult with laboratory scientists as the search for Nancy Guthrie continues, the Pima County Sheriff’s Department said.

In an update issued Friday evening, the department said officials met with the scientists “to see what more could be done to advance the case.”

Nancy, the 84-year-old mother of Today show host Savannah Guthrie, has been missing for nearly nine months. She disappeared from her Tucson, Arizona, home under circumstances that remain unexplained.

“A number of ideas were discussed, and we continue to work with all of our partners to solve this case,” the sheriff’s department said, urging anyone with information to come forward as the investigation remains active.

Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos stressed that even a seemingly insignificant detail could help investigators. “Even the smallest piece of information could be critical to the investigation,” he said.

Nancy visited the home of her other daughter, Annie, on January 31, arriving at about 5.30pm. She returned to her own house at approximately 9.45pm.

Annie’s husband, Tommaso Cioni, drove Nancy home and is believed to be the last person to see her. He told police that he watched her enter the house through the garage door.

At around 1.45am on February 1, Nancy’s doorbell camera was disconnected from the front of her home. Minutes later, the device detected a person, but that footage is no longer available.

Police previously said another video showed a masked figure tampering with the camera. At about 2.30am, Nancy’s pacemaker also became disconnected from her phone and Apple Watch.

Friends became concerned later that morning when Nancy failed to attend church, something they described as highly unusual for her.

Roughly an hour later, relatives went to her house and discovered that she was missing. They called 911 to report her disappearance.

The investigation has since included multiple news conferences held by the sheriff’s office, along with emotional public appeals from Nancy’s family.

Savannah traveled to Arizona to support her siblings before eventually addressing her mother’s disappearance in an Instagram post.

In the video, a visibly upset Savannah sat alongside her sister Annie and brother Camron as they pleaded for their mother to come home safely.

She also addressed those who may be holding Nancy, saying, “We are ready to talk.” However, she insisted the family would need genuine proof that her mother was alive and would not accept AI-generated images or videos as evidence.

Savannah has since returned to New York City, where she has resumed her role on the show.

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In early April, FBI agents found what they described as “potentially critical” new DNA at Nancy’s home.

Agents sent the sample to a private Florida lab, sources previously told ABC News.

Pieces of hair found inside Nancy’s property are among the new evidence being tested, NewsNation previously reported.

A series of ransom notes have also come into play during the investigation, including one that claimed to have video of Nancy’s killers. 

The clip, which was mentioned by an anonymous man in the correspondence, is believed to have been captured on the same day she disappeared. 

The writer claimed there were two kidnappers, and he had video of ‘the main guy’ with Guthrie, stashed on a hidden phone. Nanos has dismissed the note. 

‘I think the FBI has done a number of arrests for false or fake ransom notes. It’s a shame that that happens, but I think we’re looking at another one of those today,’ Nanos said during an interview with local radio station KVOI AM 1030. 

‘It is a shame that these types of events occur; people have great interest… that’s good because it helps us, but then it gets really abused. 

‘People who call in fake ransom notes, people who claim for the sake of media and the family, they get out and disturb, in this case, an entire neighborhood,’ he continued. 

In June, a massive search was launched for Nancy in Mexico. 

After a local search group received an anonymous tip claiming her alleged grave had been found, a report said.

The leader of the local Buscando Corazones collective in the city of Nogales said the information came in regarding Nancy, according to local outlet El Imparcial.

The Pima County Sheriff’s Office said the agency is aware of the reports, but they have not been contacted by Mexican authorities. 

‘The investigation remains active and ongoing, and we will continue to follow up on credible information,’ the office added.  

The Buscando Corazones collective has previously discovered more than 25 unmarked graves in that area, the report stated. 

The “Squad” is poised to become more than a fringe faction in the new House.

The far-left coalition, which emerged after Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s 2018 election, is expected to form a significant bloc. Its members are eager to use their growing influence to advance an expansive agenda that includes abolishing ICE, creating Medicare for All, expanding gender-affirming care and establishing government-run supermarkets.

Election experts say the group could grow from its current core of seven members to as many as 16 following a series of primary victories. The number rises to roughly two dozen when including other left-wing progressives who share some of its positions but are not closely aligned with the Democratic Socialists of America.

The Squad’s influence will depend heavily on the size of any Democratic majority.

If Democrats secure only a narrow majority of just more than 218 seats on Tuesday, the expanded “Squad” could wield even greater leverage. Its members would have the power to derail House rules proposed by party leaders and force votes on controversial amendments.

Republicans warn that “lunatics” leading the Democratic Party would pursue “woke wild goose chases,” pulling Democrats into ideological fights at the expense of more mainstream priorities, RNC spokeswoman Delanie Bomar told The Post.

“These communist wannabes would hold [likely Speaker] Hakeem Jeffries hostage until he helps them turn America into a socialist hellhole.”

Moderate Democrats are expressing concerns as well.

“They’re going to cause problems. They’re going to try to dominate the narrative,” a former Democratic leadership aide told The Post. The aide predicted that socialists would seek influential committee assignments and other avenues of power within the House.

Critics say the size of the “Squad” is only part of the story.

“If they do take back control of the House on Tuesday, the Democratic leadership you’ve been promised will change too,” former RNC national spokesperson Elizabeth Pipko said. “This is not just about the Squad doubling in size, but the consequences of the Squad possibly doubling in influence.”

A Brookings Institution study released in August identified 282 DSA candidates running nationwide, including 19 who won primaries in national races. Internal DSA figures, based on online data and reviewed by The Post, show the number rising from 90 candidates in 2025 to 338 this year — nearly a fourfold increase — with 1,452 campaigns launched over eight years.

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High-profile victories in November could prompt socialist lawmakers to demand greater recognition and potentially strengthen the case for a presidential bid by Ocasio-Cortez, D-NY, who has campaigned across the country for fellow left-wing candidates.

Policies supported by DSA-backed candidates or introduced in legislation include abolishing ICE. Some prospective members of Congress, including New York City’s Darializa Avila Chevalier, have advocated funding free lawyers to help millions of illegal immigrants pursue citizenship. Claire Valdez, a left-wing New York congressional candidate, has promoted nationwide rent control and called for demilitarizing the border.

Pennsylvania state Rep. Chris Rabb, who is expected to win a Philadelphia-area House seat as a Democrat, has endorsed a system of national grocery stores, a signature proposal of New York City socialist Mayor Zohran Mamdani.

Nineteen of the 22 left-wing lawmakers identified as potential Squad allies support some version of Medicare for All. Critics argue the proposal could eliminate private health insurance used by millions of Americans.

Other priorities include ending military aid to Israel, eliminating cash bail and abolishing life sentences without parole.

Valdez has criticized “cowards” who she says are “betraying the entire working class” by distancing themselves from transgender issues. She has called for a trans bill of rights and for “making sure that Medicare for All includes gender-affirming care and health care for trans folks.”

The DSA also advocates “fully abolishing the police and prison system which protects the rich and jails the poor.”

That agenda stands in sharp contrast to the message of dozens of Democrats headed to Washington after defeating Republicans by focusing on high gas prices and promising to bring inflation under control.

“We’re going to enter a new era of performative politics and just like crazy demands as well,” said Stu Smith, a socialism expert at the Manhattan Institute. He pointed to the DSA’s Workers Deserve More platform, which would “defund the Department of War” and take steps to “fully abolishing the policy and prison system.”

“This whole new batch [of DSA members] that they have are a totally different bunch of people.  Their kind of pedigree has been selected to be far more radical compared to someone like AOC,” he said.

A sharp turn left is worrying voters.

An October CNBC poll found that 28% of voters said their biggest concern under a new Democratic Congress would be the passage of DSA policies. Voters identified that more than any other concern, including inflation and rising taxes.

But individual socialist lawmakers in deep blue districts won’t face such constraints — and could carve out a national fundraising platform by standing firm, following the lead of AOC, who hauled in more than $37 million this election cycle.

The mystery surrounding escape artist Harry Houdini did not end with his death. A century later, questions about his life, performances and final days continue to intrigue historians and fans.

Born Erik Weisz in Hungary, Houdini immigrated to the United States with his family when he was 4. He later rose to become one of the world’s most celebrated magicians and vaudeville stars.

Houdini died at age 52 on Oct. 31, 1926—100 years ago.

Officials attributed his death to peritonitis, an infection resulting from a ruptured appendix. Yet almost immediately, competing explanations began circulating, and speculation has persisted ever since.

One theory holds that a series of unexpected punches to the abdomen triggered the fatal appendicitis, despite Houdini’s reputation for maintaining extraordinary physical fitness.

Another account suggests that the performer was suffering from an intestinal obstruction instead.

There are also claims that spiritualists targeted Houdini. In the period before his death, he had aggressively challenged mediums and exposed alleged séances as fraudulent.

A 1953 movie helped fuel another enduring misconception by depicting Houdini trapped inside his famous Water Torture Cell, unable to escape before it claimed his life.

“There’s plenty of room for speculation, for conspiracy theories, and so it continues,” Houdini historian and biographer John Cox told News Media.

“It continues to this day.”

Houdini’s extraordinary career and mysterious final chapter are revisited in the new three-part Fox Nation series “Houdini: Back from the Dead,” which uses artificial intelligence to imagine the legendary performer appearing for a modern interview about his ambitions, relationships and most famous escapes.

‘Poorly timed’ punch

At the center of the debate over Houdini’s death is a widely reported confrontation that took place on Oct. 22, 1926, when the escape artist endured a series of blows to his stomach.

Nine days before Houdini died, university student J. Gordon Whitehead went to see him backstage at a Montreal theater. According to historians, Houdini was resting on a couch when Whitehead asked whether he could demonstrate the performer’s ability to withstand a punch to the abdomen.

Houdini agreed to the test.

Whitehead, however, started striking before Houdini had time to prepare himself.

The assault reportedly continued until someone else in the dressing room pleaded with Whitehead to stop, according to Roger Dreyer, president of Houdini Revealed, a New York museum.

Many Houdini researchers believe the incident led him to dismiss or overlook symptoms that were actually signs of appendicitis, Cox said.

Although the punches were long suspected of causing the inflammation that killed him, no definitive evidence has ever established that connection.

“He didn’t get it treated in time,” Cox said. “His appendix ruptured. This caused peritonitis, which was a massive infection. And back then, you died from that.

“Had he not been punched, this pain would have come out of nowhere, and he might have gone and sought medical attention sooner. So the punch was very likely just a very poorly timed accident that caused him to not pay attention to what was really happening to him medically.”

Regardless, the punches brought a financial windfall to his family.

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Houdini was thousands of dollars in debt at the time of his death. Because the punches were blamed for killing him, his life insurance policy paid out double.

“He had a life insurance [policy] of $25,000,” Dreyer said.

The agreement was that “if he died from an accident, he received another $25,000. Twenty-five-thousand dollars back then was almost $500,000” in today’s value.

Spooky Halloween seances

Houdini had been fixated on the idea of death, because his daredevil behavior often brought him to the brink of it, Dreyer said.

But Houdini also worked to expose as frauds people who claimed to communicate with the dead. He believed their tactics were scams that targeted grieving people.

He faced defamation lawsuits for that, Dreyer said.

He and his wife, Bess Houdini, made an agreement that if one of them died, they would try to contact the other.

After his death, Bess Houdini held seances every Halloween for 10 years, attempting to make contact. When none of her attempts were successful, she gave up, concluding contact with the dead wasn’t possible.

One hundred years later, interest in Houdini lives on. That’s because he was more than just a performer, Dreyer said.

“It’s not because of his death we’re talking about him. It’s because of the way Houdini lived and what he represented. That’s why we’re talking about Houdini.”

He was the top “social influencer” of his time––a “pop icon,” Dreyer said. Houdini still is a household name and is synonymous with escaping tricky situations, he noted.

More than just a performer, he sought to spread a positive message that would motivate people to overcome challenges in life, Dreyer said.

As “chief wizard officer” of Fantasma Toys, Dreyer tries to carry on Houdini’s sense of surprise and making “the impossible possible” to inspire the next generation of magicians.

One of Houdini’s mottos was: “My brain is the key that sets me free,” Dreyer said.

“His escapes remind us that ingenuity, determination and courage can help us overcome life’s challenges.”

And his escapes still captivate even those who’ve studied him for decades, Cox said.

“We’re still trying to figure out how Houdini did what he did.”