Three investigators were seen searching the septic tank in the backyard of Guthrie’s Tucson, Arizona, home Sunday afternoon as the investigation into her disappearance entered its eighth day.
Nancy Guthrie is the 84-year-old mother of “Today” show co-host Savannah Guthrie.
Former SWAT team captain Josh Schirard told the Daily Mail that septic tanks can retain potential evidence that suspects may believe has been destroyed.
“A lot of people forget that having a septic tank means wastewater doesn’t go into a city sewer, it goes into the tank,” Schirard said.
“So, somebody may have flushed something thinking that would get rid of it, but instead it would actually just be deposited in the septic tank,” he added.
Schirard said investigators may be attempting to determine whether any items inside the tank could indicate guilt or provide clues about the disappearance.
Despite an ongoing multi-agency investigation involving the Pima County Sheriff’s Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, authorities have not publicly identified any suspects or persons of interest.
Nancy Guthrie was last seen on Jan. 31 after being dropped off at her home by her son-in-law, Tommaso Cioni.
Cioni is married to Savannah Guthrie’s older sister, Annie.
During the past week, multiple news outlets have received what investigators believe may be ransom messages related to the case.
One of the messages demanded $6 million in bitcoin for Guthrie’s return.
On Saturday, Savannah Guthrie and her two siblings released a second video appeal directed at whoever may be holding their mother.
“We received your message, and we understand,” Savannah Guthrie said in the video.
“We beg you now to return our mother to us so that we can celebrate with her,” she added.
“This is the only way we will have peace,” Savannah Guthrie said, adding that the family is willing to pay.
Also on Saturday, law enforcement officers were seen returning to Annie’s home.
Investigators were observed leaving the property carrying a silver Cellebrite case, which is commonly used to collect and analyze digital forensic evidence.
Authorities have not commented on what, if anything, was recovered during the searches.
Until Tuesday, investigators had not publicly identified any suspects, nor had law enforcement provided significant details about a possible abductor.
On Monday, a deadline to pay a $6 million ransom in bitcoin passed, and hours before the deadline expired, Savannah Guthrie released another emotional video appeal on Instagram.
“We are at an hour of desperation,” she said in the video.
HOLY CRAP! The mother-in-law of a subject detained in Rio Rico just did a LIVE INTERVIEW with CNN at the location authorities are conducting a search court authorized search RIGHT NOW.
This is WILD and even CNN was astounded that this woman just came out and did a TELL-ALL… pic.twitter.com/CizwVeKPhD
— Gunther Eagleman™ (@GuntherEagleman) February 11, 2026
Patel again urged anyone with information related to the case to contact the FBI by calling 1 800 CALL FBI or submitting tips through tips.fbi.gov.
Authorities confirmed Tuesday night that a man detained earlier in the day in connection with the search for Nancy Guthrie’s alleged kidnapper was released without charges, according to ABC15.
The man, identified only as Carlos, told the outlet he and his wife were driving when they noticed police following them.
Carlos said officers initiated a traffic stop, after which he was taken in for questioning.
“I told them, I work in Tucson for GLS, I might have delivered a package to her house but I never kidnapped anybody,” he said.
New: This is Carlos, who was detained in Rio Rico, Ariz., for questioning in the Nancy Guthrie abduction and has since been released.
He said he does not know why he was detained, had not heard of Nancy Guthrie and hopes the police find the actual culprit.@nytimes pic.twitter.com/kvBGFdIVGw
— Nicholas Bogel-Burroughs (@NickAtNews) February 11, 2026
Carlos added that he was detained for several hours before being released.
