Arizona sheriff blocks FBI access to evidence in Guthrie case
Arizona’s Pima county Sheriff is reportedly blocking the FBI from accessing key evidence in the missing-person case of 84-year-old Nancy Guthrie. The sheriff’s office has sent evidence,including a glove and DNA from Guthrie’s home,to a private lab in Florida at the expense of about $200,000,rather than handing it to the FBI’s Quantico lab. The FBI has offered a $100,000 reward and released a new suspect description after doorbell footage showed a man near Guthrie’s Tucson home tampering with a Ring camera and carrying a black Ozark Trail backpack. The examination is led by the Pima County Sheriff’s Office with FBI involvement, and federal resources were deployed last week. Nancy Guthrie is the mother of NBC’s Savannah Guthrie, adding national interest to the case.
Arizona sheriff blocks FBI access to evidence in Nancy Guthrie abduction
The local Arizona sheriff whose office is leading the investigation into the recent abduction of Nancy Guthrie is reportedly blocking the FBI from accessing key evidence in the case.
Such physical evidence includes a glove and DNA recovered from the 84-year-old woman’s home, Reuters reported. She went missing 12 days ago.
Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos is sending the evidence to a private lab in Florida instead of handing it over to the FBI for forensic testing at its national crime lab based in Quantico, Virginia. Reuters reported the news based on a source who revealed the county has spent at least $200,000 sending evidence to the Florida contractor.
Fox News later corroborated the story, citing a source who said FBI investigators will likely need to retest the evidence themselves. This would further delay the search for Guthrie, wasting time for all authorities involved.
The Washington Examiner contacted the FBI Phoenix Field Office and Pima County Sheriff’s Office for comment on the reported tensions.
The lack of cooperation between the law enforcement agencies comes as the investigation nears its two-week mark.
Assisting in the investigation, the FBI is offering a $100,000 reward for any information that leads to the location of Guthrie or to the arrest and conviction of those involved in her disappearance. The bureau also released a new description of the suspect who was seen in doorbell camera footage outside Guthrie’s residence in Tucson, Arizona.
In the video, the suspect approached Guthrie’s front door and tampered with the Ring camera. The suspect is believed to be a man wearing a black “Ozark Trail Hiker Pack” backpack.
FBI DOUBLES REWARD IN SEARCH FOR NANCY GUTHRIE AS NEW SUSPECT DETAILS RELEASED
The Pima County Sheriff’s Office is taking the lead on the investigation while the FBI provides assistance as requested by local officials. The Trump administration deployed federal resources to help with the investigation last week.
The nation is following the case closely as the missing woman is the mother of Today co-host Savannah Guthrie, who hasn’t appeared on the morning show since the family emergency started.
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