It’s been over three weeks since Nancy Guthrie, the 84 year-old mother of the TODAY s how host Savannah Guthrie, went missing from her home in Tucson, Arizona. Yesterday, we reported that Savannah has announced that her family is offering a reward of up to $1 million for information that leads to her mother’s return.
Now, a source close to the Guthrie family is speaking out to reveal why Savannah has decided to offer this reward when the FBI has already announced a $100,000 reward of their own.
Savannah Offers $1 Million Reward
“The family first raised this on the first day of the investigation. And has been ready to do this ever since,” an insider close to the family told People Magazine. “They were advised by all involved in the investigation that doing so earlier might overwhelm the infrastructure set up to field leads. Tens of thousands of which have been coming in organically.”
Other sources have said that Savannah specifically used the language “up to $1 million” because if there is more than one valid claim, the reward could be split among multiple people.
The reward is also not contingent on any arrest. The Guthrie family plans to follow the guidance of the FBI in determining if a lead or a tip warrants money being paid out.
Savannah Announces $1 Million Reward
Savannah announced the reward on Tuesday morning in an emotional video posted to Instagram. In it, she publicly admitted for the first time that her family is aware that Nancy may no longer be alive.
Savannah began her latest video by describing the 24 days that Nancy has been missing as being “agony.” She said that during that entire period, her family has been “fearing for her and aching for her. And most of all just missing her.”
Savannah went on to become visibly emotional as she acknowledged that her family knows that Nancy might be dead.
“We also know that she may be lost, she may already be gone,” Savannah stated. “She may already have gone home to the Lord that she loves and is dancing in Heaven. And if this is what is to be, then we will accept it. But we need to know where she is. We need her to come home.”
Savannah said that if Nancy is dead, her family will “accept it.” However, they also desperately need closure.
“But we need to know where she is,” the longtime TODAY host insisted. “We need her to come home. For that reason, we are offering a family reward of up to $1 million for any information that leads us to her recovery.”
Savannah Addresses Nancy’s Kidnapper
Savannah proceeded to issue a plea directly to Nancy’s kidnapper.
“If you’ve been waiting and you haven’t been sure, let this be your sign to please come forward,” Savannah told the person. “Tell what you know and help us bring our beloved mom home so that we can either celebrate a glorious, miraculous homecoming or celebrate the beautiful, brave, noble and courageous life that she has lived. Please be the light in the dark.”
Savannah ended her latest video acknowledging that there are millions of families in their exact situation right now. That’s why her family has already made a $500,000 donation to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. Savannah applauded this organization for “helping families who are coping with loss and actively looking for those who are lost.”
“We are hoping that the attention that has been given to our mom and our family will extend to all the families like ours, who are in need, and need prayers and need support,” Savannah concluded.
Check out Savannah’s full video for yourself below.
Nancy Disappears
Nancy was last seen on the night of Saturday, January 31. That evening, she had gone to dinner with her daughter Annie and her son-in-law Tommaso Cioni. They brought her home at around 9:45pm that night, and she has not been seen since. It is believed that Nancy was kidnapped from her home in the early hours of February 1.
A masked intruder was captured on Nancy’s doorbell ring camera just before she was taken. He managed to cover it with some plants before moving forward with the kidnapping. It was just revealed that the masked man had been seen in the doorbell ring camera prior to the night Nancy was taken. This indicates that he may have been casing out her home.
Find out more about that in the video below.
This has clearly been an extremely tragic and horrifying situation for the entire Guthrie family. Please join us in saying a prayer for them, and for the safe return of Nancy Guthrie.