The law enforcement supervisor who was first on the scene of Nancy Guthrie‘s kidnapping had never investigated a homicide before, an insider has claimed.
A source close to the Guthrie investigation revealed to NewsNation’s Brian Entin that the first officers dispatched to her Tuscon, Arizona home on February 1 were ill-prepared to handle the case.
‘The people who were there on the scene were not tenured homicide detectives,’ the insider said while speaking anonymously over fears he could lose his job.
‘They didn’t have a lot of experience in homicide at that point to include the supervisor who, from my understanding, never investigated a homicide before being installed as the supervisor to the homicide unit.’
The source suggested the officer may have been appointed to the supervisor role due to having personal connections within the Pima County Sheriff’s Department.
‘You have decisions made by people that will install friends and people that can do stuff for them, opposed to people that are there under merit and can do the job correctly,’ he told Entin.
The insider, whose full interview will air at 10pm Thursday on Katie Pavlich Tonight, has echoed claims that the sheriff’s department made a slew of poor decisions during the initial investigation that may be why the case remains unsolved today.
Guthrie, 84, was last seen at her home on January 31 and was reported missing the following day. Authorities believe she was kidnapped, abducted or otherwise taken against her will.
Nancy Guthrie, 84, was last seen at her home on January 31 and was reported missing the following day. Authorities believe she was kidnapped from her Tucson, Arizona home
The law enforcement supervisor who was first on the scene of Nancy Guthrie’s kidnapping had never investigated a homicide before, an insider told NewsNation’s Brian Entin (pictured)
‘The people who were there on the scene were not tenured homicide detectives,’ the source, who spoke to NewsNation anonymously amid fears he could lose his job, said
Drops of her blood were found on the front porch and several gloves were discovered around her home, but authorities were unable to link any DNA evidence or items to any suspects.
The search also saw two individuals briefly apprehended 10 days and 13 days into the investigation, only for them both to be released without charges after it was found they were not connected to the case.
The FBI released surveillance footage on February 10 that showed a masked man at Guthrie’s doorstep the night she disappeared. Authorities have otherwise released little evidence publicly.
The Pima County Sheriff’s Department has been heavily involved in the Guthrie investigation and has come under fire for the way Sheriff Chris Nanos has handled the case.
Still, Nanos has told the press he had ‘no regrets’ about his team’s decisions.
In the early hours of the case, Nanos allegedly failed to deploy a crucial search-and-rescue aircraft, grounding the vital device when it was needed most.
The aircraft, equipped with high-resolution thermal imaging cameras capable of scanning vast swaths of desert terrain, remained on the tarmac for roughly half a day, sources said, despite a situation in which every minute can make a difference.
During the first five days of the investigation, Nanos and his deputies released and re-sealed the crime multiple several times, leading to claims that evidence may have been lost or contaminated.
Drops of her blood were found on the front porch and several gloves were discovered around her Nancy Guthrie’s $1 million home, (pictured) but authorities were unable to link any DNA evidence or items to any suspects
The FBI released surveillance footage on February 10 that showed a masked man at Guthrie’s doorstep the night she disappeared. Police have otherwise released little evidence publicly
But Nanos has brushed off allegations that he mishandled the crime scene at the $1 million Tucson home or botched the case, appearing to blame huge media attention for confusing the investigation.
‘I don’t regret we let the crime scene go too soon or any of that,’ he said in an interview last week. ‘That’s just silly.’
Nanos added that he has not given up hope that he could solve the case, saying his investigators are still looking at ‘cell tower dumps and analyzing her cell phone.’
In a message directed at Guthrie’s at-large abductors, Nanos appeared to indicate he believes she may still be alive, telling the suspects: ‘Just give her up. Just let her go. Just take her to a clinic, a hospital, drop her off… just let her go.’
However, Pima County Deputies Organization president Aaron Cross has claimed that authorities in the county have grown frustrated with Nanos’s leadership.
He told The New York Post it is ‘a common belief in this agency that this case has become an ego case for Sheriff Nanos.’
Authorities have faced dozens of questions and mounting pressure to solve the case as the investigation approaches the three-month mark. Officials are pictured above in front of Nancy’s home on February 25
Sheriff Chris Nanos, pictured above, said in a recent media interview that he had ‘no regrets’ about how his department handled Nancy’s case
Nancy Guthrie’s daughter Savannah (pictured together) took a two-month absence from the Today Show sparked by the abduction. She is set to return to the program on April 6
Nanos now faces a potential recall over his handling of the kidnapping, which made international headlines.
Soon after news of Guthrie’s abduction made national headlines, her Today Show host daughter Savannah Guthrie reportedly wanted to issue a big reward to boost leads for her mother.
But Nanos was accused of stopping the family from doing so, fearing that an influx of tips could muddy his investigation, sources told Fox News in February.
Savannah eventually did issue the reward 24 days into the search, with the case remaining unsolved ever since.
She said in an interview last month that she fears her fame and wealth may have triggered her mother’s abduction.
Savannah said she believes two ransom notes sent to her family were genuine. She previously said her family accepts that Nancy may no longer be alive, but that they would still like the return of her body so they can give her a proper Christian burial.
The morning show anchor has taken two-month absence from Today sparked by the disappearance of her mother. She is set to return to the program on April 6, but has warned her comeback may be short-lived.
