Note sent to media outlets claims Nancy Guthrie died after 'kidnap'

A note sent to the media following the disappearance of Nancy Guthrie claimed she had died, according to reports.

Some outlets previously said they received ransom notes about the case in the days following the disappearance of Ms Guthrie from her home near Tucson, Arizona.

Two notes sent to a TV network in the wake of the 84-year-old's disappearance were believed to be potentially credible by investigators.

The first note said Ms Guthrie, the mother of Today host Savannah, was safe and demanded cryptocurrency in exchange for her release, whereas the second did not ask for money and was said to be very different from the first.

Now Sky's US partner network NBC News has reported that this second note indicated she had died after her disappearance.

However, it did not offer an apology or ask payment for the release of her body, according to NBC.

According to the note, those who kidnapped her did not mean to kill her, but she died shortly after being taken.

The existence of the note was known, but some details including claims she had died, had not previously been released.

Tucson TV station KOLD that received two notes agreed to hold off sharing the contents publicly so any future communications with the kidnapper or kidnappers could be authenticated.

Jessica Bobula, news director of KOLD, said the station received several notes after Ms Guthrie disappeared and the station told authorities and shared only what the FBI released about the correspondence.

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Ms Guthrie was reported missing from her home on 1 February and was last seen at the property at around 9.45pm the previous evening.

Police believe she was kidnapped or "otherwise taken against her will" after finding blood near her front doorstep.

The FBI released surveillance videos of a masked man outside Guthrie's front door on the night she went missing. It has since described the man as a suspect.

Volunteers and search teams scoured the nearby desert terrain filled with cactuses, bushes and boulders in the weeks after she vanished.

A volunteer group recently conducted a search for her body near the Arizona-Mexico border but didn't report finding her.

Investigators involved in the case examined the two notes following Ms Guthrie's disappearance and believe they could be credible.

After the second note was sent, Savannah Guthrie spoke about her mother's possible kidnapping in an Instagram video, and said the family would "pay" for her return.

"We received your message and we understand," Savannah Guthrie said, sat beside her brother, Camron, and sister, Annie. "We beg you now to return our mother to us so that we can celebrate with her. This is the only way we will have peace."

"This is very valuable to us, and we will pay," Savannah Guthrie added.

Her video did not specify the details of the message she received.

The Pima County Sheriff's Department said on Tuesday: "The investigation into the disappearance of Nancy Guthrie remains active and ongoing.

"The Pima County Sheriff's Department continues to work closely with the FBI as investigators follow up on leads, review information, and pursue the facts surrounding this case."

Savannah Guthrie returned to NBC's Today show in April for the first time since her mother's disappearance.

The 54-year-old has said she's a changed person since she went missing and that it's difficult to press ahead without knowing what happened to her.

(c) Sky News 2026: Note sent to media outlets claims Nancy Guthrie died after 'kidnap'