Nancy Guthrie Case

Kash Patel is putting a local sheriff's office on blast -- and he's not sugarcoating it.

During a fiery sit-down on "Hang Out with Sean Hannity" released today, the FBI director went off over how the Nancy Guthrie case has been handled ... zeroing-in on the Pima County Sheriff's Department for keeping the FBI on the sidelines when it mattered most.

Check it out ... Patel says the FBI was locked out for four full days -- a delay he made clear is a huge deal in a missing-persons investigation.

"The first 48 hours of anyone's disappearance are the most critical," he said.

The search for Nancy Guthrie’s been dragging on for nearly two months -- but the Pima County Sheriff's Department had people thinking it was finally over ... before the internet quickly called BS!

The department dropped a "Update: Nancy has been located" post on X Thursday night -- and given they’re the ones leading the search for Savannah Guthrie’s mom, you’d assume they meant that Nancy. Not quite.

A quick glance at the poster attached tells a very different story -- it’s actually a completely different woman, Nancy Radakovich, with "LOCATED" stamped across her pic.

The hunt for Nancy Guthrie in her cold case may have just hit a turning point ... because the FBI is using new technology to zero in on DNA evidence.

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ that agents are analyzing what could be a crucial sample recovered from the 84-year-old’s Tucson, Arizona home ... and it’s already been sent through a private lab working with the Pima County Sheriff's Department before landing in federal hands.

This is the same DNA evidence that was recovered from Nancy’s home earlier in the probe. But here’s the catch ... the DNA isn’t clean. Investigators say it’s a mixed sample from multiple people, meaning it’ll take time to separate and figure out what actually matters.

Savannah Guthrie's keeping busy amid the ongoing search for her missing mother ... reuniting with Hoda Kotb on "Today" for their first cohosting gig in over a year.

The duo was back side by side Monday morning ... Savannah opened by saying it was nice to be together again, with Hoda chiming in she's happy to be back in the chair next to her. Savannah quipped it felt just like "old times."

Hoda was filling in for Craig Melvin, who’s currently on vacation ... and the reunion comes after the last time they cohosted together, which was Hoda’s final day on the show back in January 2025.

She hasn’t been gone long, though ... Hoda also stepped in while Savannah took time off following the disappearance of her mom, Nancy Guthrie ... and Savannah only just returned to the show earlier this month.

Savannah Guthrie is taking tips on the art of finding joy -- explaining joy and sadness aren't mutually exclusive -- in one of her first mornings back on the "Today" show.

The longtime NBC host chatted with author Kate Bowler, who wrote "Joyful, Anyway" ... a book all about finding joy when circumstances aren't perfect.

Check out the vid ... Guthrie says it's the exact book she needs right now -- more on that in a minute -- while making it clear being joyful doesn't mean embracing toxic positivity or forcing oneself to be happy.

There are a couple of new notes in the Nancy Guthrie cold case ... both from the same person offering information on the kidnapper, but for the first time they're revealing an exact location and claiming they saw her in Mexico.

TMZ received the first new note Monday morning -- the same day Savannah Guthrie made her return to "TODAY" -- and it's from the person who has been offering to rat out the kidnappers for nearly two months now. They say their demand for 1 bitcoin to "deliver them on a silver platter" still stands.

Shortly after we talked about the first note on "TMZ Live," the person sent a second letter saying ... "I Saw her alive with them in the state of Sonora Mexico."

It's an emotional morning for Savannah Guthrie ... Monday marks her first show back at "Today" since her mother disappeared two months ago.

She stepped out onto the 30 Rock plaza -- walking hand-in-hand with Jenna Bush Hager -- to rejoin cohosts Craig Melvin, Carson Daly, Al Roker and Sheinelle Jones as they anchor the show surrounded by a cheering crowd.

Craig welcomed back the show's "North Star," and Savannah is seen tearing up while greeting fans ... many of whom were holding signs that said "Welcome back Savannah."

Savannah Guthrie is officially back on the “Today” show ... after stepping away for two months amid her mother’s disappearance.

Savannah was back in the anchor chair Monday morning alongside Craig Melvin ... wearing a bright yellow dress and a matching heart necklace.

She kicked things off by running through the morning’s top headlines … before turning to Craig with a smile and saying, "It is good to be home."

Savannah made it clear she’s jumping right back in … adding, “Well, here we go, ready or not, let’s do the news,” before diving straight into the broadcast.

Savannah Guthrie is enduring her first Easter since her mom Nancy's disappearance ... and just like in her Christian tradition, the day comes with a bittersweet message.

In a video recorded for the Good Shepherd New York church's digital Easter gathering, Savannah admits that sometimes "life itself seems far harder than death" and that she experienced "deep disappointment with God" after her mom was kidnapped February 1.

According to Savannah, not knowing her mom's whereabouts or what exactly happened to her is particularly challenging.

But Savannah's faith also brought her comfort during her darkest days. Savannah believes Jesus had similar feelings of uncertainty that she has endured.

The Pima County Sheriff's Department canned one of its deputies after he was arrested on a kidnapping charge ... according to KOLD-TV.

The deputy, Travis Reynolds, was booked by the Tucson Police Department Thursday ... and he was in court Friday, where the judge set his bond at $200K.

Prosecutors claim a female victim told authorities she was afraid of the deputy because of the "power dynamic" between the two of them after Reynolds allegedly called her "hot" and shared a vape pen with her while transporting the woman to Pima County Jail in Arizona.

Savannah Guthrie is officially heading back to the “Today” show ... after stepping away for nearly two months amid her mother’s disappearance.

Guthrie will return to the anchor desk April 6 … with Hoda Kotb making the announcement Friday morning, revealing Savannah will be back alongside Craig Melvin.

Craig added the show can’t wait to welcome her back with open arms ... and in the latest installment of her interview with Hoda -- released Friday -- Savannah admitted it's been hard to imagine returning to that space, but agrees the show is part of her "purpose."

Savannah Guthrie believes the 2 ransom notes her family received regarding her mother Nancy Guthrie's disappearance were legit.

The "Today" host reflected on the ransom notes during her sitdown with Hoda Kotb ... saying she believes the notes her family responded to are real, and the rest likely phony.

We were first to report on a ransom note back in February ... demanding millions in bitcoin, while claiming Nancy was safe but frightened. We received that note and immediately contacted the Pima County Sheriff, and hours later, we received the first of many calls from the FBI.

What's puzzling ... Savannah said early on her family would pay the ransom, but we have been monitoring the bitcoin address and the money was never paid. We know the family was in constant contact with the FBI, but we do not know if there was a change of heart.

Savannah Guthrie says she knew her mom, Nancy, hadn't just wandered off when she surveyed the scene at her home ... and she focused on one eerie clue in particular -- the doors were left propped open.

In an interview with her "Today" co-anchor, Hoda Kotb, Savannah revealed her first thoughts when hearing about her mom's disappearance.

She said, "We thought she must have had some kind of medical episode in the night and that somehow the paramedics had come, because the back doors were propped open, and that didn't make any sense."

Savannah Guthrie says it was "absolutely terrifying" to see the alleged kidnapper on front-door camera video moments before he broke into her mom's Arizona home and snatched her.

The "Today" anchor sat down for her first interview -- which aired Thursday -- since her 84-year-old mother Nancy Guthrie was abducted from her house in Tucson on February 1.

Fighting tears, Savannah told her co-anchor Hoda Kotb she was horrified by the video showing the masked intruder walking up to the door of Nancy's residence.

Savannah Guthrie is overcome with emotion in her first interview since her mother’s disappearance -- apologizing to her mother and family over the possibility her fame may have played a role.

Speaking with Hoda Kotb, Savannah says she first learned something was wrong when her sister, Annie, called to say their mom, Nancy Guthrie, had gone missing.

She says her brother -- a former fighter pilot in the military who also worked in intelligence -- immediately feared the worst, telling her he believed their mother may have been kidnapped for ransom.

Savannah Guthrie is speaking out about her mother Nancy Guthrie's kidnapping in her first public interview ... airing on "TODAY" Thursday and Friday.

The "TODAY" show played a preview of the emotional interview between Savannah and Hoda Kotb during Wednesday morning's broadcast ... and it shows a heartbroken Savannah describing the intense pain her family feels.

She's in tears and pleads ... "Someone needs to do the right thing ... We are in agony. ... It is unbearable. And to think of what she went through."