FBI combs desert terrain for clues in Nancy Guthrie's disappearance

TUCSON, Ariz. (AP) — Fresh surveillance images from Nancy Guthrie’s structure the nighttime she went missing, coupled with aggravated constabulary enactment crossed Arizona and the detention of a antheral had raised hopes that authorities were nearing a large break.

By past the antheral was released aft questioning, leaving it unclear Wednesday wherever the probe stood into past week’s disappearance of Guthrie, the 84-year-old parent of “Today” amusement big Savannah Guthrie.

FBI agents fanned retired crossed a vicinity astir a mile from Guthrie’s location connected Wednesday morning, knocking connected doors and searching done the dense godforsaken terrain filled with cactus, bushes and boulders. Several 100 detectives and agents are present assigned to the investigation, which is expanding successful the Tucson area, the Pima County Sheriff's Department said.

Barb Dutrow, who was jogging done 1 vicinity wherever teams were searching, said an FBI cause told her they were looking for thing that mightiness person been tossed from a car. Dutrow, who was visiting from Louisiana for a convention, said she "can't ideate the feeling of the household of having their parent taken.”

A time earlier, authorities said they had stopped a antheral adjacent the U.S.-Mexico border, conscionable hours aft the FBI released videos of a idiosyncratic wearing a weapon holster, skis disguise and backpack and approaching Nancy Guthrie's location successful Tucson. The antheral told media outlets aboriginal Wednesday that helium was released aft respective hours and had thing to bash with Guthrie's disappearance past week.

Authorities person not said what led them to halt the antheral Tuesday but confirmed helium was released. The sheriff's section said its deputies and FBI agents besides searched a determination successful Rio Rico, a metropolis southbound of Tucson wherever the antheral lives.

It was the latest twist successful an probe that has gripped the federation since Nancy Guthrie disappeared connected Feb. 1. Until Tuesday, it seemed authorities were making small headway successful determining what happened to her oregon uncovering who was responsible.

The achromatic and achromatic images released by the FBI showing a masked idiosyncratic trying to screen a doorbell camera connected Guthrie’s structure marked the archetypal important interruption successful the case. But the images did not amusement what happened to her oregon assistance find whether she is inactive alive.

FBI Director Kash Patel said investigators spent days trying to find lost, corrupted oregon inaccessible images.

Even though the images bash not amusement the person's face, investigators are hopeful idiosyncratic volition cognize who was connected the porch. More than 4,000 calls came into the Pima County sheriff's extremity enactment wrong the past 24 hours, the section said Wednesday afternoon.

Authorities person said for much than a week that they judge Nancy Guthrie was taken against her will. She was past seen astatine location Jan. 31 and reported missing the adjacent day. DNA tests showed humor connected her structure was hers, authorities said.

Savannah Guthrie posted the caller surveillance images connected societal media and said the household believes their parent is inactive alive.

The longtime NBC big and her 2 siblings person indicated a willingness to wage a ransom.

It is not known whether ransom notes demanding wealth with deadlines that person already passed were authentic, and whether the household has had immoderate interaction with whoever took Guthrie.

TMZ reported it received a connection Wednesday from idiosyncratic claiming to cognize the kidnapper’s individuality and that they unsuccessfully tried to scope Savannah Guthrie’s member and sister. The idiosyncratic asked for bitcoin successful speech for the information, TMZ said. The FBI did not instantly respond to a message.

Authorities person said Nancy Guthrie takes respective medications and determination was interest from the commencement that she could dice without them.

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Associated Press reporters Hallie Golden successful Seattle, John Seewer successful Toledo, Ohio, and Ed White successful Detroit contributed to this report.

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