Human bones found close to Nancy Guthrie’s home do not belong to the missing 84-year-old, investigators have confirmed.
The elderly mother of Today show host Savannah Guthrie disappeared on February 1 and police believe she was kidnapped from her Tucson, Arizona residence.
Fox News reporter Michael Ruiz joined investigators combing a desert region about 15 minutes east of the property on Thursday, where streamer A.J. Double U News, who covers Guthrie’s case, said bones had been found.
However, Tucson Police said the human bones were ‘prehistoric’ and did not belong to the missing grandmother.
Ruiz posted video showing investigators searching the area, which has been cordoned off with police tape.
Tucson Police quickly clarified that the bones were not linked to Guthrie.
‘The bone found near Craycroft and River was determined to be human,’ the department said in a statement. ‘This will be a prehistoric anthropological investigation.
‘The University of Arizona’s Anthropology Department and the Pima County Office of the Medical Examiner assisted. This is not a criminal investigation.’
The 84-year-old mother of NBC News Today anchor Savannah Guthrie disappeared on February 1 and police believe she was kidnapped from her home
Human bones were found close to her Tucson, Arizona home on Thursday but they were quickly determined to be unrelated to her
Tucson Police said the human bones were ‘prehistoric’ and did not belong to the missing grandmother
Nancy’s puzzling disappearance quickly captivated the world. She has not been seen or heard from since the evening of January 31.
The investigation involves about two dozen Pima County and FBI detectives, who have probed a series of blackmail messages sent to the family and to media outlets demanding bitcoin money in return for Nancy.
None of the ransoms were ever paid as the Guthrie family demanded proof of life, but never got it.
Authorities and the family also could not verify the authenticity of the ransom notes, despite their willingness to pay.
Over the course of the investigation, only a handful of people have been taken in for questioning. No one has been arrested.
Various pieces of evidence have also been found at the home and in the surrounding area, including drops of blood on Nancy’s front porch, a torn-down doorbell camera, and several gloves.
Surveillance footage also captured a masked person outside her front door, appearing to tamper with the doorbell camera before it was snatched off.
Her daughter Savannah has since made her way back to New York City and is back on-air at NBC’s Today show.
The elderly mother of Today show host Savannah Guthrie disappeared on February 1, and police believe she was kidnapped from her Tucson, Arizona home
Surveillance footage also captured a masked person outside Nancy Guthrie’s front door, appearing to tamper with the doorbell camera before it was snatched off
Police believe Nancy Guthrie was kidnapped from her Tucson, Arizona home (pictured)
All eyes have been on the TV personality as she continues to fight for answers about what happened to her mother.
A rumor quickly spread in mid-April after social media users claimed to have seen Savannah disappear from the show halfway through a chat with actress Anne Hathaway.
Given the abduction of her mother, many speculated she may have received an update and had to step away.
But the rumor was entirely false, with Savannah back on air 20 minutes later for a cooking segment.
An industry source told the Daily Mail: ‘It’s not unusual for a host to tease an upcoming segment at any point, and for another host to do the interview.’
But the sudden switch spawned an avalanche of speculation.
‘Maybe she got a call and was going to leave after the last set?’ one X user wrote.
A rumor quickly spread on Wednesday after social media users claimed to have seen Savannah disappear from the show halfway through a chat with actress Anne Hathaway
The rumors gained traction thanks to a widely viewed post from one X account, the Crimewives Club. The profile regularly shares updates for ongoing investigations.
Savannah made her return to the Today set last week. She stepped away during the initial months of the search.
‘It’s good to be back home,’ she told viewers at the outset of her April 6 return.
Sources told Variety a few days before that the Today team was planning to initially play it by ear’ for Savannah’s return.
The FBI is offering up to $50,000 for information about her mother’s whereabouts as the investigation continues.
