{"id":2564985,"date":"2026-02-05T20:14:01","date_gmt":"2026-02-06T01:14:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/breaking-fbi-arrests-man-for-allegedly-targeting-nancy-guthries-family-with-demands-4\/"},"modified":"2026-02-05T20:17:40","modified_gmt":"2026-02-06T01:17:40","slug":"breaking-fbi-arrests-man-for-allegedly-targeting-nancy-guthries-family-with-demands-4","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/breaking-fbi-arrests-man-for-allegedly-targeting-nancy-guthries-family-with-demands-4\/","title":{"rendered":"Breaking: FBI Arrests Man for Allegedly Targeting Nancy Guthrie&#8217;s Family with Demands"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">24<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fbreaking-fbi-arrests-man-for-allegedly-targeting-nancy-guthries-family-with-demands-4%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2564985&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>&#8211; Derrick Callella, a 42-year-old man from Los Angeles, was arrested by the FBI on charges related to texts sent to the Guthrie family seeking Bitcoin ransom to recover missing 84-year-old Nancy Guthrie.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; the texts are not believed to be connected to the ransom demand that was reported to have been received by a Tucson TV station via an <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/breaking-fbi-arrests-man-for-allegedly-targeting-nancy-guthries-family-with-demands-2\/\" title=\"Breaking: FBI Arrests Man for ... Targeting ...&#039;s Family with Demands\">online tip portal<\/a>, adn Callella allegedly tried to use a VOIP app, which investigators intercepted by obtaining his IP address tied to California.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; Callella faces two counts: transmitting a ransom demand related to a kidnapped person and engaging in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/breaking-fbi-arrests-man-for-allegedly-targeting-nancy-guthries-family-with-demands\/\" title=\"Breaking: FBI Arrests Man for ... Targeting ...&#039;s Family with Demands\">anonymous interstate communications<\/a> to harrass or threaten. He reportedly admitted to sending two texts after Miranda warnings, saying he had pulled the family\u2019s information from a cyber site and had been watching TV.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; The Guthrie family, including Savannah Guthrie, released a heartfelt video asking the kidnapper to contact them and provide proof of life; shortly after, they reportedly received additional texts attributed to Callella.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; President Donald Trump stated that the federal government would deploy whatever resources are necessary in the search for Nancy Guthrie.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<section> \t\t\t\t<script>console.log(\"ad slot (AC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC2)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC3)\")<\/script><\/p>\n<p>The FBI arrested a Los Angeles man Thursday who allegedly sent texts to Nancy Guthrie&rsquo;s family seeking a bitcoin payment as a ransom to return the missing 84-year-old.<\/p>\n<p>Fox News correspondent Bill Melugin reported, &ldquo;Derrick Callella has been arrested by the FBI for allegedly sending texts to the Guthrie family to ask for bitcoin and see if they would respond. His text messages are *not* believed to be connected to the ransom demand.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Feds say he tried to use a VOIP [voice over internet protocol] app which they were able to quickly get around via an emergency disclosure request to their mobile carrier, then they found his IP address and linked it to his California address,&rdquo; Melugin added.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">BREAKING: A Los Angeles man named Derrick Callella has been arrested by the FBI for allegedly sending texts to the Guthrie family to ask for bitcoin and see if they would respond. His text messages are *not* believed to be connected to the ransom demand.<\/p>\n<p>How they caught him &amp;&hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/BrPjcgYHxt\">pic.twitter.com\/BrPjcgYHxt<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Bill Melugin (@BillMelugin_) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/BillMelugin_\/status\/2019508387449561292?\">February 5, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p> <script type=\"text\/javascript\"> \t\t\tif ( getCookie( \"ff_subbed\" ) ) { \t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"stnvideo\").remove() \t\t\t} else { \t\t\t\tdocument.addEventListener(\"DOMContentLoaded\", function() { \t\t\t\t\tfunction loadScript(src) { \t\t\t\t\t\tconst script=document.createElement(\"script\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.src=src; \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.async=true; \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.body.appendChild(script); \t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\tfunction findPreviousParagraph(selector, x) { \t\t\t\t\t\tconst targetElement=document.querySelector(selector); \t\t\t\t\t\tif (!targetElement) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.warn(\"Target element not found.\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\treturn null; \t\t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Get all <\/p>\n<p> elements in order as they appear in the document \t\t\t\t\t\tlet paragraphs=Array.from(document.querySelectorAll(\"p\"));  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Find the index of the last <\/p>\n<p> before the target element \t\t\t\t\t\tlet targetIndex=paragraphs.findIndex(p=> p.compareDocumentPosition(targetElement) & Node.DOCUMENT_POSITION_PRECEDING);  \t\t\t\t\t\tif (targetIndex===-1 || targetIndex <x) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.warn(\"Not enough paragraphs before the target element.\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\treturn null; \t\t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\treturn paragraphs[targetIndex - x]; \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Set up IntersectionObserver \t\t\t\t\tfunction observeElement(element) { \t\t\t\t\t\tif (!element) return;  \t\t\t\t\t\tconst observer=new IntersectionObserver( \t\t\t\t\t\t\t(entries)=> { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tentries.forEach(entry=> { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tif (entry.isIntersecting) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.log(\"Paragraph is now visible:\", entry.target.textContent.trim()); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tloadScript(\"https:\/\/embed.sendtonews.com\/player3\/embedcode.js?fk=s28Az7AY\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tobserver.disconnect(); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t}, \t\t\t\t\t\t\t{ threshold: 0.5 } \/\/ Adjust threshold as needed \t\t\t\t\t\t);  \t\t\t\t\t\tobserver.observe(element); \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Find the 1st paragraph before #stnvideo and observe it \t\t\t\t\tlet paragraphToObserve=findPreviousParagraph(\"#stnvideo\", 2); \t\t\t\t\tobserveElement(paragraphToObserve); \t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> <\/p>\n<p>The two<a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >-count criminal complaint posted<\/a> by Melugin said that KOLD-TV, a CBS affiliate in Tucson, Arizona, received the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/breaking-apparent-ransom-note-emerges-nancy-guthrie-disappearance\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">ransom demand<\/a> via an online tip portal. Callella is charged with transmitting a ransom demand related to a kidnapped person and engaging in anonymous interstate communications intended to harass or threaten.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;The demand listed a Bitcoin wallet address to receive the ransom payment,&rdquo; the complaint said.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;After Miranda warnings, Callella[[<a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/FoxNews\/posts\/pfbid0ijvBeiomDMkmfPr1ZvS91hHYrPfECXhoB9hAfTxjoMGKDMfuNn4TFr1cZBmvPuV6l\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">age 42<\/a>]admitted to sending the two text messages. He admitted to using the VOIP account from which two <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/breaking-fbi-arrests-man-for-allegedly-targeting-nancy-guthries-family-with-demands-3\/\" title=\"Breaking: FBI Arrests Man for ... Targeting ...&#039;s Family with Demands\">actual text messages<\/a> came &hellip; Callella stated that he pulled the family information from a cyber website, and that he had been following along and watching TV.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>The Guthrie family, including Nancy&rsquo;s daughter, NBC host <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/police-sources-detail-grim-findings-house-savannah-guthries-mother\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Savannah Guthrie<\/a>, released a heart-wrenching video Wednesday, asking for the kidnapper to reach out to them and to provide proof of life.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">From Savannah Guthrie&rsquo;s Instagram page <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/kLbjkhUCIG\">pic.twitter.com\/kLbjkhUCIG<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Steve Lookner (@lookner) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/lookner\/status\/2019220465563365580?\">February 5, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>Shortly after the video was published, one of Guthrie&rsquo;s daughters and a son-in-law both separately received a text message allegedly from Callella saying, &ldquo;Did you get the bitcoin [we&rsquo;re] waiting on our end for the transaction.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>President Donald Trump <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/trump-gives-guthrie-family-everything-can-search-continues-deploying-resources\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">said<\/a> Wednesday that the federal government will commit whatever resources are necessary in the search for Nancy Guthrie.<\/p>\n<div style=\"position: relative;\">\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<div class=\"entry-submit-correction inner-content\">\n<div class=\"correction-form\">\n<form style=\"display: none;\">\n<div class=\"sc-name-field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* Name<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"name\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<div class=\"sc--field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* <\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<label>* Message<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t<textarea name=\"message\" required><\/textarea> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"required-message\" style=\"display: none; padding-bottom: 15px;\">* All fields are required.<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"submit\" value=\"Submit\" onclick=\"event.preventDefault(); firefly_sc();\"> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"firefly-sc-confirm\" style=\"display: none;\">Success!<\/div>\n<\/p><\/form>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> \t\t<script> \t\t\tfunction firefly_sc() { \t\t\t\tif( typeof window.captchaPublicKey==typeof undefined ){ \t\t\t\t\tconsole.error('window.captchaPublicKey is not defined'); \t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\tgrecaptcha.execute( window.captchaPublicKey, { action: 'submit_correction' } ).then( function( token ) { \t\t\t\t\tvar opts={ \t\t\t\t\t\taction:    'firefly_sc_submit', \t\t\t\t\t\tname:      document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"name\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\t:     document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tmessage:   document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"message\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tpost_id:   firefly_post_id, \t\t\t\t\t\tcap_token: token \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tvar inputs=[ 'name', '', 'message' ];  \t\t\t\t\tfor( var i=0; i <inputs.length; i++ ) if( ! ( opts[inputs[i]]=document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"' + inputs[i] + '\"]' ).value ) ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .required-message' ).style.display='block'; \t\t\t\t\t\treturn; \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction input[type=\"submit\"]' ).style.display='none'; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).src=firefly_loading_gif_url; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display='inline-block';  \t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( 'ma subbing' );  \t\t\t\t\tif( firefly_post_id ) opts['post_id']=firefly_post_id;  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Send the data using post with element id name and name2*\/ \t\t\t\t\tvar posting=jQuery.post( firefly_ajax_url, opts );  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Alerts the results *\/ \t\t\t\t\tposting.done( function( response ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tif( response.success ) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( response.data ); \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display='none'; \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-confirm' ).style.display='block';  \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdataLayer.push( { 'event': 'submit-correction' } ); \t\t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> \t     \t\t\t\t\t\t     \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p style=\"border: 1px solid #f5f5f5; padding: 16px;\">Advertise with The Western Journal and reach millions of highly engaged readers, while supporting our work. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/advertise-us\/?wj_source=article\">Advertise Today<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><script>console.log(\"ad slot (BA1)\")<\/script> \t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A Los Angeles man, Derrick Callella, was arrested by the FBI on charges related to sending text messages to the Guthrie family soliciting Bitcoin as a ransom to recover a missing 84-year-old. Fox News\u2019 Bill Melugin said the messages are not believed to be connected to the actual ransom demand, and investigators say Callella tried to use a VOIP app; after an emergency disclosure request to his mobile carrier, they traced his IP address to California. The two\u2011count complaint charges Callella with transmitting a ransom demand tied to a kidnapping and with anonymous interstate communications intended to harass or threaten, and the messages allegedly included a Bitcoin wallet address. Callella reportedly admitted, after Miranda warnings, to sending the two texts and to using the VOIP account, saying he pulled the victim\u2019s family information from a cyber site and had been following TV coverage. The Guthrie family\u2014including Nancy Guthrie and Savannah Guthrie\u2014had released a plea video seeking the kidnapper\u2019s contact and proof of life; shortly afterward, one of Guthrie\u2019s daughters and a son-in-law received texts allegedly from Callella asking if they had received the Bitcoin and noting they were \u201cwaiting on our end.\u201d President Donald Trump said the federal government would devote whatever resources are needed in the search. The indictment notes the ransom demand came through an online tip portal associated with KOLD-TV, a CBS affiliate in Tucson, Arizona. Callella faces charges of transmitting a ransom demand and engaging in interstate harassment<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2564986,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Guthrie-bitcoin-demand-arrest.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[5175,70371,50645],"class_list":["post-2564985","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-arrest","tag-breaking-news-2","tag-fbi-2"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Guthrie-bitcoin-demand-arrest.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2564985","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2564985"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2564985\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2564994,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2564985\/revisions\/2564994"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2564986"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2564985"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2564985"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2564985"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}