Guthrie Update - Backpack found in search of Savannah's mother Nancy

Updated Feb. 23, 2026, 7:10pm ET

The search for Nancy Guthrie, the mother of “Today” show co-host Savannah Guthrie, has entered its 22nd day.
Volunteers recovered a backpack near the search area, which was turned over to sheriff’s deputies.
No suspects have been named, and as of February 22, authorities had no new updates on the investigation.
Law enforcement asks anyone with information to contact 1-800-CALL-FBI or tips.fbi.gov, the Pima County Sheriff’s Department (520-351-4900) or 88-CRIME.

TUCSON, Arizona – As the search for the missing 84-year-old mother of “Today” show co-host Savannah Guthrie enters its 22nd day, volunteer searchers are looking for clues.

Early on February 22, volunteers gathered in the parking lot of the Tucson, Arizona, Hobby Lobby before beginning an informal search a short distance from Guthrie’s home. Group recovered a backpack that was handed over To the representatives.

The Pima County Sheriff’s Department later said on February 23 that the backpack found by volunteers did not appear to be a “viable lead”, noting that it appeared to be a different brand from the one worn by the suspect in doorbell surveillance footage that the FBI had previously released. The Sheriff’s Department said, “It appears that the backpack had been outside for more than three weeks” and “had the identification of a minor inside it.”

According to Sheriff’s Department spokeswoman Angelica Carrillo, authorities had no updates on the investigation as of the morning of February 22.

Later, outside Guthrie’s home, Tucson resident Lupita Tello cleaned off the mess with a sharp metal rod attached to a handle. After spinning the rod in the dirt, Tello took it out and sniffed the sharp metal tip.

“If it smells bad, like a decomposing object, that’s where we start,” Tello said while showing reporters and true-crime streamers the main tool used to search for missing people in Mexico.

This would be the first time his group, Madres Buscadores de Sonora, would explore in the Americas. This group is a non-profit organization in Mexico whose purpose is to find lost and missing people in Sonora. Some people in the group joined the search for their missing sons and others for their missing brothers.

Tello said his group had recently been told about Nancy Guthrie’s case by a journalist friend of Guthrie’s daughter, Savannah, and was asked to create flyers and research her.

The Pima County Sheriff’s Department told him the group must ask permission from homeowners to search on private property, Tello said, but it does not need a formal permit.

Volunteer search groups like Tello have inquired about being in the area, Carrillo said. Carrillo said he was asked to give investigators the space they need to do their work and to contact the department to get involved in any volunteer opportunities.

Tello said the Madres Buscadores de Sonora was planning an official search at the end of the week.

As the afternoon sun set, many passers-by from out of town began to wander toward Guthrie’s one-story brick home in the Catalina foothills. Some people came from as far as Phoenix to see the home of the missing woman who has captured the world’s attention.

The search for volunteers began about a week after Savannah Guthrie Posted On February 15, on social media, she pleaded with anyone who knew her mother’s whereabouts to say that “it’s never too late to do the right thing.”

Investigators are still reviewing evidence in Nancy Guthrie’s disappearance

The DNA found on Guthrie’s property was mixed, meaning it came from more than one person, making it difficult to run through a national database, Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos said in an interview broadcast Feb. 21.

The FBI is also analyzing DNA found on a glove found about two miles from Guthrie’s home, but no results have been released.

Guthrie has been missing since January 31. Detectives are pushing to identify the masked man captured on doorbell video the night she disappeared and have said they are not ruling out the possibility that more than one person may be involved.

Tips were being passed to the Sheriff’s Department and FBI lines. Officials have urged the public to submit only actionable tips, not well wishes or similar comments.

No suspects have been named yet and the complex DNA evidence is still undergoing laboratory analysis, Nano said in an interview with NBC.

A significant development in the Guthrie case occurred on February 10, when investigators recovered footage of a masked man captured on Guthrie’s doorbell camera on the night of her disappearance. Authorities are still searching for the man who was wearing the gloves in the footage.

The Pima County Sheriff said investigators were getting closer to identifying items of clothing worn by the masked man, which included pants, shoes and a shirt or jacket.

Investigators continued to review surveillance footage linked to key pieces of evidence, including a backpack possibly purchased from Walmart.

The Sheriff’s Department said it is working with the retailer to help identify the buyer. Legal experts point out that stores routinely share transaction records and video footage with law enforcement during active investigations.

Carrillo said several hundred law enforcement personnel have been assigned to the case, with staffing levels changing depending on investigative leads. The investigation will remain active until Guthrie is found or all leads are exhausted, he said.