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July 1, 2026 / 10:22 PM EDT
/ CBS News
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Who is behind the ransom notes tied to Nancy Guthrie's kidnapping? That question continues to plague investigators working the case in Arizona, five months after the 84-year-old grandmother and mother of "Today" show co-host Savannah Guthrie was kidnapped in the middle of the night.The notes fall into three categories: the two notes sent within the first week of her disappearance that investigators believe are likely legitimate, those that could be legitimate but that don't have any clues suggesting they are, and those that authorities say are money grabs from would-be extortionists."The FBI and its task force partners have received several ransom notes over the course of this investigation," an FBI official said Wednesday in a statement to CBS News. "Some have been deemed to be extortion attempts without legitimacy. Other ransom demands may potentially be legitimate and are still being investigated as such."The FBI official said the agency is assisting local authorities, namely the Pima County Sheriff's Department, which is the lead agency on the case. Law enforcement sources have told CBS News that the FBI has been handling the digital forensic work on the ransom notes. Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos has directed all questions about ransom notes to the FBI. "This case continues to be investigated as a kidnapping for ransom case," the FBI official said Wednesday.
