Arizona Sheriff Leading Nancy Guthrie Case Reveals His Brother Died 1 Day After Her Disappearance — As He Shuts Down 'Haters' Accusing Him of 'Botching' Investigation

As the investigation into Savannah Guthrie's mother, Nancy's disappearance, enters its third week, Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos revealed he has been dealing with his own family tragedy, RadarOnline.com can report.

As Nanos receives a hefty amount of criticism for the way the Guthrie case has been handled so far, the sheriff announced his brother passed away in hospice one day after the 84-year-old was snatched from her home in the middle of the night.

Nanos opened up about the devastating news his family dealt with in a conversation with The Daily Mail.

He explained dealing with the death of his brother could potentially explain why he was so sensitive to early accusations about Nancy's daughter Annie's husband, Tommaso Cioni.

Following the news of Nancy's abduction, many people were quick to suspect Cioni had something to do with it.

Veteran journalist Ashleigh Banfield took it a step further, directly alleging he "may be the prime suspect' in her disappearance.

"People out there can get pretty ugly and mean and nasty and not have the facts," Nanos said about the ordeal. "I tell my journalists, 'You guys need to be a little more responsible… because that's just really nasty stuff.'"

The sheriff also addressed his "haters" who claim he botched the investigation into Nancy's disappearance by releasing the crime scene too prematurely, as the FBI ended up coming and deciding to reseal her home.

"My officers were there for almost 20 hours, and they processed their scene, got it done, and brought in all the evidence," he stated. "Then the FBI came and did their thing."

While a suspect has not been identified in Nancy's case to date, Nanos stressed that "nobody" has been cleared.

Regardless, he feels that the accusations being thrown in Cioni's direction are "a lot of stress."

"If he [Tommaso Cioni] is guilty, if he's the one who did it, and we're able to prove that, then at that time jump on it, but don't come out of nowhere with this," Nanos insisted.

He added: "I understand the pundits are out there. They're gonna say, well, he's the last one to see her alive. We understand that stuff. But, my goodness, you're putting a mark on somebody who could be completely innocent. And more important than that, he's family."

Nancy has been missing since February 1, having last been seen at her home on January 31. Prior to arriving back at her residence, she had spent the night at Cionni and Annie's home for dinner and a game of mahjong. Cionni then drove her back to her house, making him the last person to see her before she was abducted.

The next morning, Nancy was due to attend a livestream of a church service at a friend's house. When she didn't show and her friend wasn't able to get in contact with her, they reached out to Annie.

By the time her kids arrived at her house, Nancy was already gone, having left her wallet, keys, and cellphone behind.

At this time, the investigation remains ongoing, with the whereabouts of Nancy and the identity of her abductor both remaining unknown.

Savannah and her family have made many statements along the way via Instagram, with the latest one coming last night.

"I wanted to say to whoever has her or knows where she is that it's never too late, and you're not lost or alone, and it is never too late to do the right thing," she said. "We are here, and we believe, and we believe in the essential goodness of every human being, and it's never too late."

Savannah also stressed her family still believes Nancy will come home and retains "hope" she's alive.