'Needle in a Haystack': Hope in Nancy Guthrie Search Plummets — as Private Investigator Warns Case Could Never Be Solved
Nancy Guthrie has not been seen since January 31.
March 25 2026, Published 1:18 p.m. ET
Savannah Guthrie's mother, Nancy, disappeared from her Arizona home nearly two months ago, leaving behind her phone, wallet, car keys and droplets of blood.
As weeks pass with no clear leads to her whereabouts, hopes that the ailing grandmother is still alive and well dwindle. Now, a private investigator has exclusively shared with RadarOnline.com that finding Nancy could prove extremely difficult in the tragic case that she is no longer alive.
Nancy Guthrie Suffered Health Issues
Nancy Guthrie is 'Today' co-anchor Savannah Guthrie's mother.
Nancy, 84, was last seen on January 31 after having dinner with her daughter Annie and her son-in-law Tommaso Cioni. Later that night, she was dropped off at her home just before 10 p.m. and she is believed to have been kidnapped – and possibly injured – by an unknown assailant in the early hours of February 1.
Prior to her apparent abduction, Nancy suffered from heart issues and had a pacemaker. She was also on medication to keep her blood pressure under control. However, her prescriptions were found inside of her Catalina Foothills home, according to the Los Angeles Times, making it likely that she has not received her daily meds in some time.
Police also discovered her pacemaker was disconnected from her phone app around 2 a.m. on February 1.
In an exclusive interview, Lisa Ribacoff-Mooney, a polygraph expert and the owner of Interpoint Investigative Services, revealed the differences between searching for a missing person and someone believed to be deceased, noting that a missing person could potentially be "observed and identified" by a bystander while being transferred to another location or if they are able to escape their abductor.
'Needle in a Haystack'
Nancy Guthrie was seemingly abducted from her Arizona home on February 1.
"DNA, evidence, clues, could all be located at the crime scene, video or audio from neighbors cameras," she added. "Acquiring the license plate even from a rental vehicle is traceable."
However, when trying to "recover a body," there's less hope of unexpected sightings.
"It is harder because authorities don’t know where to look," Ribacoff-Mooney explained. "It is looking for a needle in a haystack."
"If the person that was abducted [was] moved by any mode of transportation, they may not even be in the state where the initial crime occurred," she concluded.
New Leads Could Be Found in Pharmaceutical Records
Nancy Guthrie was on daily medications prior to her disappearance.
Ribacoff-Mooney previously told Radar that the elderly woman's health conditions and her "need for her medications" was a clear cause for concern.
But it is possible that her kidnappers thought of that and planned ahead if they expected the situation to be drawn out.
"If I was leading the investigation, I would be looking at pharmaceutical records to see if there is an individual with a new prescription or multiple that match hers that were ordered or picked up all at once," she said at the time.
Savannah Guthrie's Heartbreaking Interview
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Savannah Guthrie said she's been 'in agony' since her mother's disappearance.
Savannah admitted she was haunted by thoughts of her mother in a preview for her first televised interview since the 84-year-old went missing.
"We are in agony. It is unbearable. And to think of what she went through," she said. "I wake up every night in the middle of the night, every night. And in the darkness, I imagine her terror. And it is unthinkable, but those thoughts demand to be thought. And I will not hide my face. But she needs to come home now."
