The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has confirmed that some ransom demands received in connection with the disappearance of Nancy Guthrie “could potentially be legitimate.”
According to the statement from the FBI’s Phoenix branch, while some notes have been dismissed as “unlegitimate extortion attempts,” other requests are still under active investigation.
The bureau said: “The FBI and its task force partners received several ransom demands during the course of this investigation. Some were considered extortion attempts without legitimacy. Other ransom demands may potentially be legitimate and are still being investigated as such. This case continues to be investigated as a kidnap-for-ransom case.”
“People are very interested in it, and that’s good because it helps us, but then it’s really abused. People who call with false ransom demands, people who demand for the sake of the media and the family, go out and disturb, in this case, an entire neighborhood,” he added.
The clarification follows conflicting reports raised by Reuters, which cited an anonymous FBI officer as saying none of the letters were real.
This statement is an update from the FBI that the investigation into the ransom demands is still ongoing.
The elderly woman, Guthrie, who was 84 at the time, has been missing since early 2026. There are no leads as to her abduction.
This particular case received media attention and a surveillance photo was released by authorities.
However, Pima County staff member Chris Nanos expressed skepticism about the legitimacy of some ransom demands during his radio appearance on June 26, noting that the FBI had already made “a number of arrests for bogus or bogus ransom demands.”
At this time, the investigation continues with no arrests made and Guthrie’s whereabouts are unknown.
