Armchair detectives flood social media as search for Savannah Guthrie's missing mom continues

Influencers relayed the timeline from the hours after Nancy Guthrie was last seen and posted photos of the blood found on her front porch that later was a match for the 84-year-old grandmother. Others called out individuals connected to the case as looking "sus" or suspicious, and filmed themselves walking through her neighborhood to help find her.

The desperate search for Guthrie, who authorities believe was taken a week ago against her will from her home just outside Tucson, Arizona, became the latest investigation to pique the widespread interest of online armchair detectives.

As the search continues with no suspects or persons of interest, posts across Instagram, TikTok, X, Facebook and YouTube put millions of eyeballs on tips and theories surrounding her disappearance.

They've also helped amplify rumors and forced law enforcement to repeatedly set the record straight on at least one crucial detail.

Michael Alcazar, adjunct professor at John Jay College of Criminal Justice and retired New York Police Department detective, said overall the positives outweigh the negatives when it comes to the onslaught of social media posts.

"More people are aware; It keeps people alert," he said. "If they know she hasn't been found yet, perhaps people will remember that and if they see something, they might say something."

He compared it to the widespread online response to the disappearance and death of Gabby Petito in 2021 and the effect that may have had on her body being found.

Two YouTubers said at the time that an image they posted showed Petito and her boyfriend's white van and it led investigators to the area where her body was found. However, the FBI didn't specify what led to the discovery.

"I think it's just something that we have to adapt to as far as law enforcement," Alcazar said. "The true crime community is growing. … There's a lot of people out there that want to help."

With the widespread posts also comes the proliferation of misinformation.

Ashleigh Banfield, from the cable network NewsNation, announced on her podcast Wednesday that a law enforcement source told her a Guthrie family member is the prime suspect. She seemed to quickly walk back the statement seconds later, saying the person "may be a prime suspect," and adding that family members are often looked at first. The information quickly took off across social media, with people posting photos of the person she named.

Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos addressed the rumor early in a news conference Thursday, saying authorities don't have any suspects or persons of interest. That remained the case Friday.

"I plead with you to be careful of what it is we put out there. … You could actually be doing some damage to the case, you could do some damage to the individual, too," he said later in the news conference. "Social media's kind of an ugly world sometimes."

The sheriff said he had no new information about purported ransom letters sent to some media outlets, saying the FBI is handling that side of the investigation.

Tucson TV station KOLD said Friday it received a new message via email tied to the Guthrie case but said it couldn't disclose its contents. The FBI said it was aware of a new message and was reviewing its authenticity. KOLD was one of the media outlets that received an earlier ransom message.

The sheriff acknowledged that investigators are not sharing everything they know about what happened.

"That's not how we do police investigations. There has to be some control of your case," he said, noting authorities shared more as the case proceeded.

Other social media posts about the case included a medium expressing her feeling that Guthrie is close by and a woman using astrology to point her viewers in the direction of what may have happened.

Calvin Chrustie, who has more than three decades of experience in negotiations for kidnapping, ransom and extortions, said if the public truly understood the toll those situations can have on family and law enforcement, they might not hastily post unsubstantiated information.

"This stuff on X and other stuff out there that's pure speculation is actually making it more difficult for the families and making it more difficult to the police to secure the safe, you know, the safe return of the hostage," he said.

Julie Urquhart, an elementary school teacher in New Brunswick, Canada, posted about the case on TikTok, Instagram and Facebook. She said she was drawn to the disappearance because she has a mother near Guthrie's age and was fascinated that someone could take her seemingly without a trace.

Urquhart said her information comes from national news sites and law enforcement news conferences. One of her posts on TikTok and Instagram amassed more 4 million views, she said.

"That's 4 million eyes that now saw that story and now maybe will see something or know something or know someone who does," she said. "There's just so many people it hits."