Patel Says FBI ‘Kept Out’ of Initial Days of Nancy Guthrie Investigation

The FBI was kept out of the early days of the investigation into “Today” show anchor Savannah Guthrie’s missing mother earlier this year, FBI Director Kash Patel said in an interview on May 5.

Nancy Guthrie, 84, disappeared on Jan. 31 and was reported missing the next day, with investigators saying that they believe she was abducted. No suspect, person of interest, or arrests have been made in the case, and Guthrie has not been located.

“For four days we were kept out of the investigation,” Patel said on Fox News host Sean Hannity’s podcast about the case, adding that it occurred in the initial phase of the missing persons case. “The first 48 hours of anyone’s disappearance are the most critical.”

Patel said that the Pima County, Arizona, sheriff involved in the case, Chris Nanos, erred when he sent DNA samples in the case to a private lab in Florida instead of to the FBI’s forensic laboratory in Quantico, Virginia.

“We have Quantico, best lab in the world,” Patel said, adding that FBI aircraft were “ready to move it immediately through the night.”

“Here’s how these cases work: it is a state matter, it’s a state and local law enforcement matter. What we, the FBI, do is say, ‘Hey, we’re here to help. What do you need? What can we do?’”

Nanos’s office said in a statement posted on X later on May 5, in response to Patel’s claim, that there was no delay in its cooperation with the FBI.

“Sheriff Nanos responded to the scene the night of the incident, providing immediate local leadership and oversight,” the statement said. “A member of the FBI Task Force was also notified and present at that scene working alongside our personnel. The FBI was promptly notified by both our department and the Guthrie family. While the FBI Director was not on scene, coordination with the Bureau began without delay.”

The Florida-based “laboratory utilized by the Pima County Sheriff’s Department and the FBI Laboratory in Quantico have worked in close partnership from the outset and continue to collaborate in the analysis of evidence,” the statement added. “We remain committed to a thorough, coordinated, and fact-based investigation and will continue working closely with our federal partners as the process moves forward.”

When DNA samples were sent to the FBI’s laboratory, there was no match to any individual in its database, officials said in February. Meanwhile, blood that was obtained at Nancy Guthrie’s home near Tucson belonged to her, officials said earlier that month.

In the case, the FBI released video footage and photos of a male wearing a mask, gloves, and an Ozark Trail Hiker backpack who appeared to be trying to tamper with Guthrie’s doorbell camera around the same time she went missing. The male has a medium build and is between 5 feet, 9 inches and 5 feet, 10 inches in height.

Patel told Hannity that the image and footage of the person were produced because the FBI pushed Google to access surveillance footage through the woman’s doorbell camera.

“That’s why you have that image, because the FBI worked with Google to put that image out,” he said.

Over the past several weeks, few details about Nancy Guthrie’s disappearance have been released to the public. Savannah Guthrie, who has since returned to her “Today” anchor position, has released multiple pleas for the public’s assistance in finding her mother on social media.

The Pima County Sheriff’s Office did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Wednesday.