The deadline has now passed on a $6 million Bitcoin ransom reportedly demanded by the kidnappers of Nancy Guthrie, the 84-year-old mother of TODAY show co-host Savannah Guthrie, and the silence surrounding her fate is growing heavier by the hour.
As we’ve previously noted, a ransom note was reportedly sent to several local Arizona television stations, as well as TMZ, laying out a grim ultimatum: the note demanded $4 million in Bitcoin by last Thursday, with the amount then apparently jumping to $6 million if that deadline was missed, and setting a final cutoff of Monday at 5 p.m. local time.
Related: New Video Of Nancy’s ‘Armed’ Suspect Shows Why There Were Flowers By Blood At Doorstep
That first deadline passed without payment, and when the second one came and went, federal authorities could not confirm whether any money had been transferred. What they would say, however, is perhaps even more unsettling.
In a statement to People on Tuesday, the FBI tersely said:
“The FBI is not aware of any continued communication between the Guthrie family and suspected kidnappers.”
Whoa. Those words land hard. In a case already marked by uncertainty, the lack of communication raises painful questions.
Nancy was last seen at her Tucson home on the night of Saturday, January 31, apparently after being dropped off by relatives following a dinner. When her friends couldn’t account for her the next morning, alarm bells went off. Days later, Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos confirmed what everyone was dreading: investigators believe she was taken against her will.
What has followed since has been… nothing. No answers about where Nancy is or who could possibly be responsible for taking the old woman from her home.
But officials say the effort to find Nancy has been relentless. In their Tuesday statement to People, the FBI added:
“For more than a week, FBI agents, analysts, and professional staff have worked around the clock to reunite Nancy Guthrie with her family. Additional personnel from FBI field offices across the nation continue to deploy to Tucson. We are currently operating a 24-hour command post that includes crisis management experts, analytic support, and investigative teams. But we still need the public’s help.”
Now, we continue to wait — and hope good news comes soon.
A tip line has been set up: see HERE. The FBI has offered a $50,000 reward for information leading to the recovery of Nancy Guthrie, and/or the arrest and conviction of anyone involved in her disappearance.
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