Nancy Guthrie: Kash Patel critical of Arizona sheriff’s handling of case

TUCSON, Ariz. – It’s been more than three months since Nancy Guthrie, the 84-year-old mother of “Today” show host Savannah Guthrie, disappeared from her Tucson-area home, and the Pima County Sheriff is being criticized by the head of the FBI over his handling of the case.

What they’re saying:

FBI Director Kash Patel says the Pima County Sheriff’s Department did not initially allow the FBI to assist in the investigation, which delayed the gathering of critical evidence.

Patel spoke with Fox News channel’s Sean Hannity on his “Hang Out with Sean Hannity” podcast, saying it was four days before PCSD asked the FBI to help out with the case. The FBI director says once federal agents were involved, they were able to recover the image of the masked man seen tampering with Guthrie’s doorbell camera.

Photos of the masked suspect were released by the FBI amid the ongoing search for Nancy Guthrie.

“For four days, we were kept out of the investigation,” Patel said. “When we were finally let in, Sean, look what we did. We went in and got the Ring doorbell, and we said, ‘Hey, is anyone talking to Google?’ I called the leadership at Google and I said, ‘Look, we know that there was not a subscription service to capture all of the data that would have been captured had there been a subscription service, but can we go into the cache, can we go into the date before it’s deleted and see what we can find?’ That’s why you have that image because the FBI worked with Google to put that image out.”

In the interview with Hannity, Patel also questioned PCSD’s decision to send DNA evidence to a private lab in Florida, instead of the FBI’s laboratory in Quantico.

“We would have analyzed it within days and maybe gotten better information or more information. Our lab’s just better than any other private lab out there, and we didn’t get a chance to do that,” Patel said. “So I understand everybody’s frustrations on that.”

The other side:

Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos responded to Patel’s interview, saying he was on the scene the night of Guthrie’s disappearance. Nanos also said a member of the FBI task force was notified and worked with the sheriff’s department.

FBI Director Kash Patel, Nancy Guthrie and Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos. (Getty Images)

“The FBI was promptly notified by both our department and the Guthrie family,” Nanos said in the statement. “While the FBI Director was not on scene, coordination with the Bureau began without delay.

Nanos added that the private lab in Florida and the Quantico laboratory “worked in close partnership from the onset” and they continue to work together on the DNA evidence.

The backstory:

Nancy Guthrie went missing on the night of Jan. 31 and was reported missing on Feb. 1 when she didn’t show up for church. Since her disappearance, the FBI released footage of her alleged abductor at her doorstep.

Nancy Guthrie (Pima County Sheriff’s Department)

What you can do:

Savannah Guthrie says her family is offering a $1 million reward for the recovery of Nancy. Anyone with information should contact the FBI at 1-800-CALL-FBI.

The Pima County Sheriff’s Department has also set up a tipline where the community can submit information. An online form is available for tips.

Map of the area where Nancy Guthrie was last seen: