In the middle of a missing-person search, Donald Trump picked a fight with the cameras
At some point, every high-profile missing-person case attracts a second story that is not really about the missing person at all. On Thursday, President Donald Trup leaned into that ugly gravity, urging reporters to ‘start reporting on other subjects’ as the search for Nancy Guthrie drags on in Tucson, Arizona.
What is known right now is simple and unsettled. Nancy Guthrie is 84 and the mother of Today anchor Savannah Guthrie. She was last seen on 31 January at her home in Tucson and was reported missing the following day. The FBI has described a male suspect seen on doorbell footage and offered a $100,000 (approximately £73,000) reward. Trump’s message, though, was not simply sympathetic. It was also, in essence, stop looking so loudly.
Nancy Guthrie Search Turns Into a Media Fight
Speaking to reporters on 19 February, Trump described the case as ‘so crazy’ and ‘so bad’, then pressed the media to move on, saying, ‘We have to start reporting on other subjects also and see what happens. It’s a very sad situation.’
He went further by criticising reporting around investigators’ efforts to use Guthrie’s pacemaker as a lead, arguing that discussing it publicly could tip off the person holding her. He said he ‘didn’t like’ that the pacemaker plan was reported before it happened, because the suspect could respond by thinking, ‘Well, I’m not gonna let that happen.’
The White House declined to clarify Trump’s pacemaker remarks, according to a USA Today report. That silence leaves the comment unqualified—provocative first, tidy later if ever.
In American policing, investigators routinely ask the public for help while withholding operational details precisely to avoid alerting a suspect. Trump is effectively arguing that the same public megaphone that can generate tips and pressure may also be working against law enforcement.
Nancy Guthrie Pacemaker Becomes a Clue and a Controversy
The pacemaker detail is not tabloid fluff. Rather, it is one of the few concrete investigative leads officials have discussed publicly. The Pima County Sheriff’s Department said investigators ‘are attempting to locate the device and are working with the manufacturer and other experts in the field to assist in that effort’, according to People. Law enforcement sources told CBS News they were also using a ‘signal sniffer’ to try to detect transmissions from the device.
The case timeline reads like a series of small failures that add up to a terrifying gap. According to USA Today, Guthrie’s pacemaker app disconnected from her phone at 02:28 on 1 February, shortly after the home’s doorbell camera disconnected at 01:47. A person was spotted on the doorbell footage at 02:12. The family has stressed her health is fragile and that she requires certain medications daily.
The FBI has been careful to describe only what it knows. The bureau described the suspect as a male with an average build, approximately 5 feet 9 inches to 5 feet 10 inches tall, seen in doorbell footage wearing a black Ozark Trail hiker backpack. The combined reward has climbed to more than $200,000 (about £147,000), including $100,000 (approximately £73,000) from the FBI and $102,500 (£75,000) from local authorities.
Trump Calls for Death Penalty as Political Pressure Builds
Trump has pushed publicly for the harshest punishment available, saying he wanted ‘very, very severe’ federal penalties. According to USA Today’s reporting, the Justice Department would seek the death penalty. Whether prosecutors ultimately pursue that path is not confirmed in any court filing, so the political statement should be weighed accordingly.
What is confirmed is that federal resources remain committed to the case and that the investigation is active. As the search enters its fourth week, the tension between public transparency and operational security—the exact tension Trump has now stepped into—sits at the heart of what law enforcement must navigate next.
The Pima County Sheriff’s Department sends update on the Guthrie investigation
TUCSON, Ariz. (KVOA) – This is the latest from the Pima County Sheriff’s Department on the disappearance of Nancy Guthrie. Detectives and agents have returned to the Guthrie neighborhood to continue their investigation.
Barricades have been placed, and Camino Escalante is now a one-way street, with traffic moving west to east. Authorities have asked for cooperation with this traffic change.
Investigators have collected multiple gloves from the area, which are undergoing analysis. However, no specific details about this evidence will be publicly shared since the investigation remains active.
Hundreds of law enforcement personnel are dedicated to this case until Nancy Guthrie is found or all leads are exhausted. There have been no changes to the resources allocated, although daily fluctuations may occur based on investigative leads.
DNA evidence from the crime scene is being analyzed, but there are no updates due to challenges in the process.
Additionally, the aerial activity near a landfill is unrelated to the investigation. The Sheriff has asked volunteer search groups to give investigators space to work, though PCSD offers volunteer opportunities for those wishing to assist.
Nancy Guthrie update: Savannah Guthrie’s family, Tommaso Cioni face brutal insult; ‘there’s no urgency’
Nancy Guthrie case update: ‘Today’ host Savannah Guthrie, her brother-in-law Tommaso Cioni, and the rest of their family are facing intense scrutiny
Nancy Guthrie case update: ‘Today’ host Savannah Guthrie, her brother-in-law Tommaso Cioni, and the rest of their family are facing intense scrutiny days after her 84-year-old mother went missing. Journalist and attorney Megyn Kelly and comedian Zack Peter raised several questions, targeted at the Guthries, this week.
Nancy Guthrie disappeared in the early hours of February 1, after a late-night dinner with her other daughter, Annie, and son-in-law Cioni. Authorities believe that the 84-year-old was forcibly taken from her Tucson home. Several media outlets even received ransom notes from her alleged kidnappers, who reportedly demanded millions in Bitcoin.
No suspects have been named in the case yet. A doorbell camera footage, released by the Pima County Sheriff’s Department, shows a masked and armed individual breaking the camera.
Why Savannah Guthrie and family are facing flak
Megyn Kelly was speaking to Zack Peter on the February 19 episode of her podcast, ‘The Megyn Kelly Show’, when she raised some questions about the Guthrie family’s behavior.
“We have someone that’s missing, and we are seeing the family like very, very little. There are no press conferences; we’re not seeing them out searching for their mother…I’m trying not to judge them. But like every day, I’m getting more and more curious about what’s really going on,” Zack said.
“It’s a very good point. We have seen so little of the Guthries. We haven’t even seen them out, you know, joining in a search, or like helping with the grid pattern where they walk the grounds. We haven’t seen…” Kelly noted. Zack interjected: “Prayer vigil.”
“Or like even an everyday update, like this is — ‘Please keep the pressure on, please keep looking for our mom.’ It’s just like every once in a while they drop like a 30-second video being like, ‘If you have our mom, please return her.’ It is a little odd,” Kelly said.
Savannah Guthrie and her siblings, Camron and Annie, have posted some videos on social media, pleading for their mother’s safe return.
“There’s no sense of urgency,” Zack said.
Megyn Kelly demands an investigation
Kelly said that Nancy’s son-in-law, who saw her on January 31, should be investigated. She argued that it would be wrong not to look at Tommaso as a possible suspect.
Nancy Guthrie update: Tucson couple discovers bombshell DNA clue; Savannah Guthrie takes big decision
