Nancy Guthrie Update: FBI Agents Could Be Sent Home As Search For Mother Stalls

FBI agents working on the Nancy Guthrie case may soon be sent back to their home divisions as the search for the 84-year-old mother of Today show host Savannah Guthrie enters its fourth week without a suspect or significant breakthrough.

According to Newsweek, retired FBI supervisory special agent Steve Moore said the investigation has 'cooled off quite a bit' since it began on 1 February. Speaking on Brian Entin Investigates, Moore said agents on the case 'are being told that they may be going back to their divisions at least until more information comes up,' though he stressed the information was unconfirmed.

The potential shift comes as law enforcement sources told ABC News that investigators believe the case may soon be handed over to a smaller, long-term task force. The Guthrie family has been briefed that certain leads have not been panning out.

At least 400 investigators have been assigned to the case around the clock. The Pima County Sheriff's Department maintains that 'there have been no changes to resources in this investigation' and pledged it will remain active 'until Nancy Guthrie is found or all leads are exhausted', Today reported.

Key Leads Failing To Produce Results In Nancy Guthrie Search

Nearly a month after her disappearance, investigators are finding their best leads coming up empty. Partial DNA recovered at Nancy Guthrie's home in the Catalina Foothills north of Tucson remains unidentified. Technology companies and the FBI have recovered no additional video from her home security system. Investigators have been unable to connect a vehicle to the abduction.

DNA from gloves discovered approximately two miles from the property yielded no matches in CODIS, the FBI's national criminal justice database. The gloves appeared to match those worn by a masked suspect captured on Guthrie's doorbell camera on the morning she vanished.

Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos told NBC News that investigators have now turned to genetic genealogy, which combines DNA analysis with genealogical records and publicly available databases. The process could take anywhere from hours to months.

'Our lab tells us that there are challenges with it, and we understand those challenges,' Nanos said. 'But our lab also knows that the technology is moving so fast and in such a frenzy that they think some of this stuff will resolve itself just in a matter of weeks, months, or maybe a year.'

Investigators Focus On Suspect's Clothing In Nancy Guthrie Case

The masked individual captured on doorbell footage remains central to the investigation. The FBI described him as a man between 5 feet 9 inches and 5 feet 10 inches tall, wearing a black 25-litre Ozark Trail Hiker Pack backpack sold exclusively at Walmart. Authorities are working with the retailer to track sales of the item.

Nanos said detectives are getting closer to identifying the suspect's shoes, trousers, shirt, and jacket, which are visible in the footage. They are also canvassing local gun shops about an unusual holster the man was wearing, positioned between his legs.

Sources told ABC News the suspect may have visited Guthrie's property on a separate occasion before 1 February. Photographs released by the FBI showing the individual without the backpack were recorded the day before the abduction, suggesting possible pre-crime surveillance.

Nancy Guthrie was last seen around 9:45 p.m. on 31 January after her son-in-law dropped her at home following dinner with family. She was reported missing the following afternoon after failing to arrive at a friend's house for a virtual church service. Authorities believe she was taken against her will. Blood was found on her front porch.

The reward for information leading to her recovery stands at $202,500 (£162,000) after an anonymous donor contributed $102,500 (£82,000) on top of the FBI's $100,000 (£80,000) offer. The Guthrie family, including all siblings and spouses, has been cleared as suspects.

Moore said there could be a silver lining to reduced FBI visibility. 'One of the good things is less visibility, and all of a sudden the case agent becomes able to work the case the way they wanted to work it,' he said.