President Trump said he is directing all federal law enforcement to be at the disposal of Savannah Guthrie‘s family as the search continues for her mother, 84-year-old Nancy Guthrie.
“I spoke with Savannah Guthrie, and let her know that I am directing ALL Federal Law Enforcement to be at the family’s, and Local Law Enforcement’s, complete disposal, IMMEDIATELY,” Mr. Trump said on social media Wednesday night. “We are deploying all resources to get her mother home safely.”
A White House official said the president called Savannah Guthrie, who co-hosts NBC’s “Today” show. The call took place right after NBC interviewed the president on Wednesday, NBC said on its streaming platform.
Authorities are trying to figure out what happened to Nancy Guthrie, who went missing over the weekend. In an emotional video released Wednesday night, Savannah Guthrie pleaded for her mother’s return and addressed any possible abductor or abductors, saying, “We want to hear from you, and we are ready to listen. Please, reach out to us.”
Authorities believe Nancy Guthrie was taken from her Tucson, Arizona, home, but say they haven’t identified any suspects or persons of interest in the case, and it isn’t clear how many people may have taken Guthrie.
Savannah Guthrie said she and her family are aware of reports of a ransom note. Multiple media organizations have reported receiving purported ransom notes, which they gave to investigators.
“We live in a world where voices and images are easily manipulated. We need to know without a doubt that she is alive and that you have her,” Savannah Guthrie said in the video posted on social media.
Law enforcement is intensifying their search. Pima County sheriffs and the FBI returned to Nancy Guthrie’s home Wednesday evening, putting up crime scene tape and combing through the property.
Former FBI agent Katherine Schweit — who worked on a similar case where an elderly woman in Wisconsin was kidnapped, held for ransom and eventually freed after five days — said “everybody is working as frantically as they can.”
“There are hundreds of people working on this,” she said Thursday on “CBS Mornings.”
The community in Tucson is holding on to hope. A few hundred people gathered at a church Wednesday evening for a vigil for Nancy Guthrie, hearing prayers and placing candles on an altar.
