'Search That Desert': Retired FBI Agent Sounds Alarm in Desperate Push to Find Missing Nancy Guthrie's Body Nearly 6 Months After Abduction
A retired FBI agent called on authorities to do a search of the Arizona desert for Nancy Guthrie.
July 20 2026, Published 3:02 p.m. ET
A retired FBI agent is urging detectives still investigating the abduction of Nancy Guthrie to "search that desert" in hopes of finding her body, RadarOnline.com can reveal.
Former special agent Jennifer Coffindaffer compared the disappearance of Today co-host Savannah Guthrie's 84-year-old mother to that of another elderly woman who went missing in 1981 and whose remains were discovered in a remote area.
Parallels Between Two Missing Person Cases
A former FBI agent brought up the case of an elderly L.A. woman whose body was found in a remote area.
Coffindaffer drew parallels between Nancy and Thelma Gaston, noting on X that she "was a millionaire who went missing 40 years ago when she was 80."
"Her remains were finally found near Sugarloaf Mountain in a desolate area," she continued, noting the woman was found in a shallow grave by a passerby collecting firewood in Riverside County in November 1981.
Unfortunately, her body was too "severely decomposed" to make a positive identification. Gaston's remains were finally identified this past May thanks to advances in "investigative genetic genealogy, in conjunction with dental records," 45 years after she vanished.
The Riverside County Sheriff's Department announced the discovery on July 15, prompting Coffindaffer's plea for a renewed search in Nancy's case.
'Search That Desert'
Coffindaffer urged authorities to 'search that desert' in Arizona for Nancy Guthrie's remains.
"This is exactly why searches need to be conducted for Nancy. Unless they know where she is, search that desert," Coffindaffer wrote about the areas surrounding Tucson, Arizona, where the frail grandmother was abducted from her home on February 1.
While there is no identified suspect in Nancy's abduction, Gaston's case ended with justice. Coffindaffer explained, "She was murdered by her paramour Lawrence Remsen, who received life for killing her."
Remsen was convicted of second-degree murder in December 1983, even though officials hadn't positively ID'd the remains of Gaston at the time.
She vanished from Los Angeles in June 1981, with 153 days passing before her then-unidentified remains were discovered. A note was found on her front door claiming she was out looking for a missing cat but was never seen again.
United Cajun Navy Turned Away by Chris Nanos
Chis Nanos imposed a 'blanket declination' of outside help in the search for Nancy Guthrie
Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos has been under fire for not bringing in outside agencies to help search the extensive Southern Arizona desert for Nancy's remains.
The United Cajun Navy claimed it offered its assistance early in the search for Nancy and was turned away.
According to the organization's Vice President Brian Trascher, Nanos imposed a "blanket declination" on outside assistance, rejecting offers from the UCN's team made up of elite law enforcement officers and combat veterans.
He told NewsNation in June that the UCN had presented a "detailed" search strategy, with the "ability to deploy K-9 teams and drone teams" in the search for Nancy's remains.
"We really felt strongly that there was a good chance that she could have ended up somewhere along the border, just because there's a lot of human remains that get found down there," Trascher said about the desert stretch of the U.S.-Mexico border.
Savannah Guthrie's Missing Mom Is 'Always With' Her
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Savannah Guthrie revealed in June that she still cries multiple times a day over her missing mom.
There have been no breaks in Nancy's case, leaving Savannah and her siblings with ongoing heartache. She opened up to Jenna Bush Hager in June about how she grieves her missing mom nonstop, but still appreciates her work at Today.
"It’s always with me. I cry every morning on the way to work, and I cry every morning on the way home," she explained. "And I’m grateful to have good friends and to be able to come to such a beautiful, joyous, and supportive place."
