The second note sent to media outlets following the disappearance of Nancy Guthrie indicated that she had died but included no apology or request for payment for the release of her body, three people familiar with the matter told NBC News.
While the note did not apologize for allegedly taking Guthrie, it did express regret over her passing, the sources said.
The existence of the note was known, but the contents, specifically that it said Guthrie had died, had not been previously disclosed.
Guthrie, the mother of the “TODAY” show co-anchor Savannah Guthrie, was reported missing from her home near Tucson, Arizona, on Feb. 1, and the circumstances of her disappearance remain a mystery.
Nancy Guthrie, 84, was last seen the previous night around 9:45 p.m. Ten days after she was reported missing, the FBI recovered chilling doorbell camera images of an armed and masked man outside her home on the morning of her disappearance. The FBI has since described that man as a suspect.
NBC News has previously reported that investigators involved in the case have examined two notes sent to media outlets in the wake of Guthrie’s disappearance and believe they are potentially credible.
The first note said Guthrie was safe and requested cryptocurrency in exchange for her release. The second note did not ask for money and differed “in almost every way” from the first, NBC News has previously reported, quoting Jessica Bobula, the news director for local TV station KOLD, which received both notes.
After the second note was sent, Savannah Guthrie addressed her mother’s possible kidnapping in an Instagram video, saying the family would “pay” for her return.
“We received your message and we understand,” Savannah Guthrie said, seated alongside her brother, Camron, and sister, Annie. “We beg you now to return our mother to us so that we can celebrate with her. This is the only way we will have peace.”
“This is very valuable to us, and we will pay,” Savannah Guthrie said in closing, holding her siblings’ hands.
Guthrie’s 20-second video did not provide specifics about the message she referenced.
The FBI has described the suspect seen in the surveillance footage as a man of average build, 5 feet, 9 inches to 5 feet, 10 inches tall, wearing a black Ozark Trail Hiker Pack 25-liter backpack.
Savannah Guthrie has said her family was still hoping for answers. In a video posted to her Instagram account on Feb. 15, she addressed whoever had her mother or knew where she was, saying, “It is never too late to do the right thing.”
Anyone with information is asked to contact 1-800-CALL-FBI (1-800-225-5324).
