FBI director says Pima County shut bureau out of Nancy Guthrie probe, Sheriff disputes claim

PHOENIX – FBI Director Kash Patel said the Pima County Sheriff’s Department kept federal investigators out of the Nancy Guthrie case for four days, potentially delaying critical evidence collection.

“For four days we were kept out of the investigation,” Patel told Sean Hannity on his “Hangout with Sean Hannity” podcast. “And when we were finally let in, look what we did.”

Patel said when the FBI did gain access, agents recovered Ring doorbell footage and worked directly with Google to retrieve cached data before it was deleted, producing a key image released in the case.

The FBI director also questioned the decision to send DNA evidence to a private lab in Florida rather than to the FBI’s Quantico laboratory.

“We have Quantico, best lab in the world,” Patel said. “(The Pima County Sheriff’s Department) said, ‘We’re sending it to Florida.'”

Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos pushed back on Patel’s account in a statement released hours after the interview.

Nanos said he responded to the scene the night of the incident and that a member of the FBI Task Force was present and working alongside his personnel.

He added the FBI was promptly notified by both the sheriff’s department and the Guthrie family.

“While the FBI Director was not on scene, coordination with the bureau began without delay,” Nanos said.

Statement from Sheriff Chris Nanos: pic.twitter.com/slujYQbncO

— Pima County Sheriff’s Department (@PimaSheriff) May 5, 2026

The sheriff said decisions about evidence processing were made on scene based on operational needs and that the lab used by his department and the FBI’s lab in Quantico have worked in close partnership throughout the investigation.

“We remain committed to a thorough, coordinated and fact-based investigation and will continue working closely with our federal partners as the process moves forward,” Nanos said.

Nancy Guthrie, the 87-year-old mother of NBC “Today” Show anchor Savannah Guthrie, disappeared from her Tucson home on Feb. 1, sparking a high-profile search that has stretched on for months without answers.

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