Nancy Guthrie: The Confusing Timeline Of Ransom Notes Explained

After Nancy Guthrie disappeared from her Catalina Hills home in Tucson, ransom notes arrived. However, many true crime followers disbelieve they were real. Now on April 6, another one arrived. It’s getting a bit confusing and folks seem frustrated. Why send notes and then not produce proof of life? It doesn’t help that other messages also cause a timeline complication. Read on for more clarity.

The Latest Ransom Communication 

The latest one arrived on the day that Savannah Guthrie returned to work on the Today Show. Per the TMZ report on Monday night:

The person who has been incessantly contacting us stopped for a while…We got another letter today from this person, an email saying, ‘I know where her body is and who the kidnapper is. Give us give me half a Bitcoin and I’ll tell you.'”

Harvey Levin also noted that the person has been “really persistent knowing that if it’s a scam, it’s a federal crime.”

The Confusion

Certainly, many people believe that the ransom notes for Nancy Guthrie is a scam, they have good reason to do so. While Savannah might believe that the first two notes were real, so many people never believed them in the first place.

Soon afteet the TMZ video, Ashleigh Banfield took to her Drop Dead Serious podcast. There, she talked about how many communications were received. Plus, she mentioned some texts.

The Old Notes

Explaining the timeline, Ashleigh said that “The headline here is that the original letters sent to TMZ and local Tucson stations KVOA and KGUN actually contained a death threat against Nancy Guthrie.”

Next, she clarified that while the public knew about the changing demands, the direct threat to Nancy’s life hadn’t been confirmed until now.

Ashleigh noted, “A second letter was sent specifically to KGUN, and we know it’s the same group because they used the identical Bitcoin address from the first round.”

She added that both Savannah Guthrie and the FBI, who worked “hand and glove” with TMZ, believe the first two letters were real. Their take on it is that they came directly from the kidnappers.

The Fake Demand

However, another confusing issue is a fake contact. No wonder folks feel confused, because even Ashleigh had to try and figure it all out. She reminded folks that Annie and Tomasso, the son-in-law of Nancy Guthrie, received “separate text messages.”

Per a federal affidavit, those were not from not the kidnappers. Derek Kolea ended up arrested in California and as he was a scammer that can be set aside for now.

The Newest Note

The April 6 note also doesn’t seem to be from the kidnapper. However, they indicate that whoever sent it, claims they “know who is.” Notably, they don’t demand a ton of money for information about the alleged abductors of Nancy Guthrie.

Apparently, what makes TMZ’s Harvey Levin a bit unsettled with the new note, is that previously, the same sender claimed that Nancy Guthrie was not alive. And, that was early on in the investigation.

Now, that same sender downgraded the urgency of their information, placing a lower price on it it. Less Bitcoin? Well, that’s also hardly something a faker would do, right?

The Timeline Recap

The Originals: Two letters sent to TMZ, KVOA, and KGUN with a death threat; believed to be authentic by the FBI, allegedly.

The Texts: Sent to family members; linked to a California man arrested for extortion, not kidnapping.

The Newer Tip: Multiple emails to TMZ but the authenticity is still unkown. The demand is only for a half a bitcoin for information about the real kidnapper. 

Viewers Weigh In 

Of interest, is that Levin believes that the FBI thinks the first ransom notes were real. That means the others were scams or just opportunities. Either way, in the comment section, tons of true crime followers remain totally skeptical.

One of them asked, “They want $35,000? Not 1.2M? Really?? None of this makes any sense.” And there’s the rub, because Savannah Guthrie offered up to a million dollars for information.

Here are a few more reactions from the comments section:

• Why don’t they just pay it!! At this point what do they have to lose other than $35k?! Isn’t that worth taking the chance to find Nancy and get justice?!!
• Savannah said she thought they were real. Nobody else has announced they thought they were real.
• Harvey told everyone from the beginning, the FBI was taking the first letter very seriously. Everyone chose to follow their own theories and it’s been a lot of noise since then….,Everyone talking and no one listening. TMZ could pay.

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