Nancy Guthrie Update: Former FBI Agent Offers Hope in Recent DNA Development

While major developments in the search for Savannah Guthrie’s mom, Nancy Guthrie, have been few and far between, former FBI agent Steve Moore recently gave her loved ones a little bit of hope.

On April 16, ABC News reported that DNA collected in February had been sent to a private lab in Florida with technology available that could help identify a suspect.

“It could be a good sign. I mean, it could be a very good sign,” Moore told Brian Entin on the Monday, April 20, episode of Brian Entin Investigates.

Moore added that if he had investigated the scene he would have “just bundled up the entire bed sheet” and “tied it at the top so everything that was in the bed would go to the lab.”

Moore also pointed out that it was nearly impossible to not leave some trace of one’s DNA behind at a crime scene.

“You cannot walk across the room without leaving some type of evidence,” he explained to Entin. “I suspect [Nancy] was helped out of bed, simply because of her age. And, if you do that and you lean over the bed… I mean, why do people wear hair nets in restaurants? Because we know hair falls in food. Hair would have fallen in that bed.”

Last week, it was widely reported that hair was discovered at Nancy’s home, which Moore found “encouraging.” However, the same day of Moore’s appearance on Entin’s program, the FBI’s assistant director for public affairs, Ben Williamson, revealed that it was still being widely reported that the DNA that recently made headlines is not new.

“Still receiving inquiries on this: this is not new evidence or information,” Williamson wrote via X on April 20. “FBI asked to test this DNA 2 months ago with the same technology we’ve always had – when the local Sheriff instead sent it to a private lab. Any further developments we will share as soon as appropriate.”

Nancy, 84, was dropped off by her daughter, Annie Guthrie, and son-in-law, Tommaso Cioni, at her home in the Catalina Foothills on January 31. When she didn’t arrive at a streaming church service the next morning, a friend alerted the family.

Savannah, 54, has issued numerous pleas asking the suspect to bring her mother home, and the family has offered up to $1 million dollars in reward money.

People with any information regarding the case are asked to contact the FBI at 1-800-CALL-FBI (1-800-225-5324). You may also contact your local FBI office, the nearest American Embassy or Consulate, or you can submit a tip online at tips.fbi.gov.