Investigators examine possible new ransom note in Guthrie disappearance

Authorities in Arizona are examining a possible new ransom note linked to the disappearance of Nancy Guthrie, nearly eight months after she went missing from her home outside Tucson. The Pima County Sheriff’s Department said investigators and the FBI Guthrie Task Force had recently been alerted to the note and related social-media comments. Officials are working to determine whether the material is credible.

Authorities did not release information about how the note was discovered or what it contained. They have not said whether Guthrie is alive. In July, investigators released two ransom notes sent to a Tucson television station shortly after Guthrie disappeared on February 1.

The first, sent the following day, said she was safe but frightened and would be released unharmed after a US$4 million cryptocurrency payment. A second note, sent on February 6, said Guthrie had died soon after being kidnapped. No suspects have been arrested, and investigators have not said how many people may have been involved or whether the abduction was carried out by someone who knew her.

The FBI has released surveillance footage of a masked person who appeared to tamper with a camera on Guthrie’s front porch and block it with a plant. Guthrie’s family has continued to appeal for information in videos posted online. The latest note is being treated as an investigative lead, not as an established account of what happened.