Amateur detectives and a new kind of journalist descend on Nancy Guthrie case
- - Amateur detectives and a new kind of journalist descend on Nancy Guthrie case
Richard Ruelas, Arizona RepublicFebruary 17, 2026 at 8:47 PM
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True-crime reporter Jonathan Lee Riches, who operates under the moniker JLR Investigates, was outside Nancy Guthrie's house on Feb. 16, live-streaming when he heard that a car was being towed from the house that law enforcement had swarmed days earlier.
While Riches told the more than 45,000 people watching his stream that after a week, it was time to pack up and leave, no other media members camped outside opted to join him.
Their presence signals a relatively new type of journalist covering the disappearance of Nancy Guthrie: live streamers and true-crime aficionados. Guthrie, the 84-year-old mother of "Today" show co-anchor Savannah Guthrie, is believed to have been taken against her will from her Arizona home earlier this month.
Live updates: Savannah Guthrie's family 'cleared' in mom abduction case
The streamers stand with phones shoulder high, narrating sometimes fact-starved and conspiratorial thoughts about the disappearance of Guthrie, who was reported missing on Feb. 1 after a friend was concerned when she did not show up for church.
Others post online about the case or host live shows about it. At least one, Joshua Ritter of Courtroom Confidential, has traveled to Arizona to host a nightly show online about the case.
Ashleigh Banfield, the host of a podcast called "Drop Dead Serious," has floated an unproven theory that a relative of Guthrie was involved in the disappearance. Riches also mentioned the names of extended family members, suggesting possible involvement. On Feb. 16 Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos seemed to hit back at online speculation, releasing a statement affirming that the Guthrie family, including spouses, had been "cleared" of involvement in the alleged abduction.
"The family … are victims in the case," he said in the statement. "To suggest otherwise is not only wrong, it is cruel." Nanos asked members of the media to exhibit professionalism and compassion.
Nancy Guthrie, was seemingly abducted from her home outside Tucson, Arizona, in the early hours of Feb. 1, 2026. Authorities released photos and videos on Feb. 10, of a potential suspect who was caught tampering with a camera on her front door on the morning of her disappearance.
" style=padding-bottom:56%>“Today” show host Savannah Guthrie’s 84-year-old mother, Nancy Guthrie, was seemingly abducted from her home outside Tucson, Arizona, in the early hours of Feb. 1, 2026. Authorities released photos and videos on Feb. 10, of a potential suspect who was caught tampering with a camera on her front door on the morning of her disappearance.
" data-src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/UNq0inOD2934CMBhotpkog--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD02NTI-/https://media.zenfs.com/en/usa_today_slideshows_242/14f3de19fc08f44dfd89c7cc19282e60 class=caas-img data-headline="Nancy Guthrie kidnapping suspect seen in new photos as search continues" data-caption="
“Today” show host Savannah Guthrie’s 84-year-old mother, Nancy Guthrie, was seemingly abducted from her home outside Tucson, Arizona, in the early hours of Feb. 1, 2026. Authorities released photos and videos on Feb. 10, of a potential suspect who was caught tampering with a camera on her front door on the morning of her disappearance.
">“Today” show host Savannah Guthrie’s 84-year-old mother, Nancy Guthrie, was seemingly abducted from her home outside Tucson, Arizona, in the early hours of Feb. 1, 2026. Authorities released photos and videos on Feb. 10, of a potential suspect who was caught tampering with a camera on her front door on the morning of her disappearance.
" src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/UNq0inOD2934CMBhotpkog--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD02NTI-/https://media.zenfs.com/en/usa_today_slideshows_242/14f3de19fc08f44dfd89c7cc19282e60 class=caas-img>New images from a Nest camera show an armed individual appearing to have tampered with the camera at Nancy Guthrie's front door on the morning of her disappearance.
" style=padding-bottom:56%>New images from a Nest camera show an armed individual appearing to have tampered with the camera at Nancy Guthrie's front door on the morning of her disappearance.
" data-src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/kJKxLKWFbex5cwKS3qe2BQ--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD0xNjM4/https://media.zenfs.com/en/usa_today_slideshows_242/cec42a96f4d16093b45973eaab121d51 class=caas-img data-headline="Nancy Guthrie kidnapping suspect seen in new photos as search continues" data-caption="
New images from a Nest camera show an armed individual appearing to have tampered with the camera at Nancy Guthrie's front door on the morning of her disappearance.
">New images from a Nest camera show an armed individual appearing to have tampered with the camera at Nancy Guthrie's front door on the morning of her disappearance.
" src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/kJKxLKWFbex5cwKS3qe2BQ--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD0xNjM4/https://media.zenfs.com/en/usa_today_slideshows_242/cec42a96f4d16093b45973eaab121d51 class=caas-img>
Savannah Guthrie, accompanied by her siblings Annie and Camron, speaks in a video message, addressing that they are willing to pay for the release of their elderly mother, Nancy Guthrie, who went missing from her Arizona home several days ago, in this screen grab obtained from social media video taken at an unspecified location and released February 7, 2026.
" style=padding-bottom:56%>U.S. journalist and television host Savannah Guthrie, accompanied by her siblings Annie and Camron, speaks in a video message, addressing that they are willing to pay for the release of their elderly mother, Nancy Guthrie, who went missing from her Arizona home several days ago, in this screen grab obtained from social media video taken at an unspecified location and released February 7, 2026.
" data-src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/Ue1s5DqqfRONHFJP4Cy_5A--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD0xMzY4/https://media.zenfs.com/en/usa_today_slideshows_242/c63c368a92722777e4bb832770f93109 class=caas-img data-headline="Nancy Guthrie kidnapping suspect seen in new photos as search continues" data-caption="
U.S. journalist and television host Savannah Guthrie, accompanied by her siblings Annie and Camron, speaks in a video message, addressing that they are willing to pay for the release of their elderly mother, Nancy Guthrie, who went missing from her Arizona home several days ago, in this screen grab obtained from social media video taken at an unspecified location and released February 7, 2026.
">U.S. journalist and television host Savannah Guthrie, accompanied by her siblings Annie and Camron, speaks in a video message, addressing that they are willing to pay for the release of their elderly mother, Nancy Guthrie, who went missing from her Arizona home several days ago, in this screen grab obtained from social media video taken at an unspecified location and released February 7, 2026.
" src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/Ue1s5DqqfRONHFJP4Cy_5A--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD0xMzY4/https://media.zenfs.com/en/usa_today_slideshows_242/c63c368a92722777e4bb832770f93109 class=caas-img>
Nancy Guthrie, the 84-year-old mother of "Today" anchor Savannah Guthrie is missing, and Arizona officials say they are investigating her disappearance as a "crime.""Today" show cohost Savannah Guthrie, accompanied by her siblings Annie and Camron Guthrie, speaks in a video message addressing a possible kidnapper who might be holding her 84-year-old mother, Nancy Guthrie in this screen grab obtained from social media video taken at an unspecified location and released Feb. 4, 2026.
" style=padding-bottom:56%>Nancy Guthrie, the 84-year-old mother of "Today" anchor Savannah Guthrie is missing, and Arizona officials say they are investigating her disappearance as a "crime.""Today" show cohost Savannah Guthrie, accompanied by her siblings Annie and Camron Guthrie, speaks in a video message addressing a possible kidnapper who might be holding her 84-year-old mother, Nancy Guthrie in this screen grab obtained from social media video taken at an unspecified location and released Feb. 4, 2026.
" data-src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/TEc5UnOU0U0LFJFRxtiFQQ--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD0xNTY4/https://media.zenfs.com/en/usa_today_slideshows_242/0868f51d586640f7f5707b3c925aaaf5 class=caas-img data-headline="Nancy Guthrie kidnapping suspect seen in new photos as search continues" data-caption="
Nancy Guthrie, the 84-year-old mother of "Today" anchor Savannah Guthrie is missing, and Arizona officials say they are investigating her disappearance as a "crime.""Today" show cohost Savannah Guthrie, accompanied by her siblings Annie and Camron Guthrie, speaks in a video message addressing a possible kidnapper who might be holding her 84-year-old mother, Nancy Guthrie in this screen grab obtained from social media video taken at an unspecified location and released Feb. 4, 2026.
">Nancy Guthrie, the 84-year-old mother of "Today" anchor Savannah Guthrie is missing, and Arizona officials say they are investigating her disappearance as a "crime.""Today" show cohost Savannah Guthrie, accompanied by her siblings Annie and Camron Guthrie, speaks in a video message addressing a possible kidnapper who might be holding her 84-year-old mother, Nancy Guthrie in this screen grab obtained from social media video taken at an unspecified location and released Feb. 4, 2026.
" src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/TEc5UnOU0U0LFJFRxtiFQQ--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD0xNTY4/https://media.zenfs.com/en/usa_today_slideshows_242/0868f51d586640f7f5707b3c925aaaf5 class=caas-img>
Nancy Guthrie missing from her home outside Tucson around noon local time on Sunday, Feb. 1.
" style=padding-bottom:56%>The Pima County Sheriff's Office in Arizona received a 911 call reporting Nancy Guthrie missing from her home outside Tucson around noon local time on Sunday, Feb. 1.
" data-src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/991Q9gB7RKeltw5x1hAUdA--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD0xMjQy/https://media.zenfs.com/en/usa_today_slideshows_242/f3443fb847ec084bbbb86b7e79834a3d class=caas-img data-headline="Nancy Guthrie kidnapping suspect seen in new photos as search continues" data-caption="
The Pima County Sheriff's Office in Arizona received a 911 call reporting Nancy Guthrie missing from her home outside Tucson around noon local time on Sunday, Feb. 1.
">The Pima County Sheriff's Office in Arizona received a 911 call reporting Nancy Guthrie missing from her home outside Tucson around noon local time on Sunday, Feb. 1.
" src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/991Q9gB7RKeltw5x1hAUdA--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD0xMjQy/https://media.zenfs.com/en/usa_today_slideshows_242/f3443fb847ec084bbbb86b7e79834a3d class=caas-img>
She was reported missing from her home in a community just north of Tucson on Feb. 1, 2026.
" data-src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/92JoOPXug0oUgXIxaAmk6Q--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD0xMjQy/https://media.zenfs.com/en/usa_today_slideshows_242/1863b846b97bea80103958e0bee51908 class=caas-img data-headline="Nancy Guthrie kidnapping suspect seen in new photos as search continues" data-caption="
She was reported missing from her home in a community just north of Tucson on Feb. 1, 2026.
">She was reported missing from her home in a community just north of Tucson on Feb. 1, 2026.
" src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/92JoOPXug0oUgXIxaAmk6Q--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD0xMjQy/https://media.zenfs.com/en/usa_today_slideshows_242/1863b846b97bea80103958e0bee51908 class=caas-img>
1 / 29Nancy Guthrie kidnapping suspect seen in new photos as search continues
“Today” show host Savannah Guthrie’s 84-year-old mother, Nancy Guthrie, was seemingly abducted from her home outside Tucson, Arizona, in the early hours of Feb. 1, 2026. Authorities released photos and videos on Feb. 10, of a potential suspect who was caught tampering with a camera on her front door on the morning of her disappearance.
Online speculation has continued to ferment as the investigation into Guthrie's disappearance drags into a third week. Investigators don't know where Guthrie is, nor who took her, nor why.
That there seem to be more questions than answers has provided fertile ground for amateur detectives, sitting behind keyboards and in front of cameras, to step in. And to chase down cars being towed.
By the time Riches got to the neighborhood where the car was being towed, it was gone. But one of Riches' followers later would send him photos of the car being towed. Undaunted, Riches went on to the home of Annie Guthrie, another daughter of Nancy Guthrie.
There, he walked along a desert wash and told his viewers he had seen a coyote.
"Things are happening, folks," he said. "Things are happening."
JLR Investigates has been the most persistent of the handful of live streamers at the Guthrie case. He and the others have a direct connection to their audience, sometimes responding to questions in real time and sometimes asking for money to keep the program going.
Nancy Guthrie disappearance draws amateur detectives and streamers to media circus
On Feb. 10, reports surfaced that law enforcement had made a traffic stop of a man in Rio Rico, a community about an hour south of Tucson. A program that tracks flights showed a helicopter leaving from the Tucson airport, landing in Rio Rico, then landing at a hospital near the University of Arizona.
The Arizona Republic, part of the USA TODAY Network, and other media outlets sent journalists to the hospital to see if the activity was connected to the Guthrie case, maybe signaling a rescue.
But the hospital parking lot did not have law enforcement in it, as it likely would have had the helicopter been connected to a rescue. It was a good tip, but not one that panned out. The Republic never reported on the medical helicopter flight.
Riches, on the other hand, felt the news was fit to print. Or stream, for that matter. From the hospital parking lot, a Republic reporter saw him talking and holding his phone in front of his face, broadcasting the "news" about the hospital to his viewers.
For Crystal Rogers, a true-crime buff, the unfiltered nature of these streams is its prime attraction.
"You're kind of right there in the midst," she said, after meeting Riches outside the Guthrie house and giving him a candy bar to keep him fueled. "Not everything that pops up is fact, but you just have to know that."
Rogers, 44, was watching the night Riches reported from the hospital about the helicopter that had made the trip to Rio Rico. Even though it was not connected to the Guthrie case, she said she was glad he took her along his reporting journey.
Before visiting the Guthrie home on Feb. 16, Rogers swung by the neighborhood where police had swarmed over the weekend. She saw the car being towed and told Riches, getting him mobilized to the scene.
A Fox News Digital reporter posted online that the car had been in a wreck and was towed at the request of an insurance company. It was not related to the Guthrie case.
Katie Warfield, who uses the moniker Behind Green Eyes, talked to The Republic after pausing her own livestream. She mainly works at night, after her day job building custom furniture, and said she had become personally invested in the outcome of the case.
Warfield traveled to Rio Rico when law enforcement detained a person for a few hours in the case. That lead, shared by law enforcement with the media, ended with the man's release.
"It's been heartbreaking," she said. "I hope there's a break in the case."
The livestreamers arrive as media presence grows
News reporters and camera crews started lining the street outside of Nancy Guthrie's home in the first days after her Feb. 1 disappearance.
The neighborhood has no sidewalks or streetlights, and the narrow asphalt road provides just enough room for passing traffic to get past the pileup of parked cars. In the first week, major television networks, local affiliates and magazines camped out. Drones buzzed overhead, and journalists formed their own air traffic control network to prevent collisions.
The presence only grew as the days ticked on and the streamers arrived, with Riches beginning a near-constant stream of the Nancy Guthrie home.
On one occasion, a pizza was delivered to the house. It was apparently meant for Riches and sent by a fan. That prompted a sheriff's department advisory asking media not to have food sent to a crime scene address, saying such actions "interfere with an active investigation."
At times, law enforcement and investigators have also taken active steps to hide their movements and operations.
On Feb. 12, authorities erected a pop-up tent over a portion of Guthrie's front patio — the area where a possible abductor was seen on security footage — as evidence was processed. Republic reporters observed sheriff's vehicles block intersections and armored SWAT trucks enter nearby neighborhoods during a coordinated operation on Feb. 13.
Hours later, in a Culver's parking lot, authorities held a sheet to shield their work while examining a gray Range Rover that was later towed away.
Is misinformation affecting the Nancy Guthrie investigation?
The coverage of Guthrie's disappearance has prompted some elected officials to speak out.
State Rep. Alma Hernandez, a Tucson Democrat, criticized what she called misinformation and speculation from some self-described journalists and livestreamers.
"I can't believe I have to say this, but if you're not law enforcement, go home,” Hernandez wrote in a post on X, accusing some online personalities of spreading "lies" and interfering with an active investigation. She urged people to allow authorities to "do their job."
Her remarks drew a response from national conservative commentator Jack Posobiec, who amplified the exchange to his more than 3 million followers on the platform.
"We will not stop reporting," Posobiec wrote in response, defending independent coverage of the case and questioning Hernandez’s criticism. Posobiec was a key figure in disseminating the so-called "Pizzagate" conspiracy that led people to believe a Washington, D.C.-area pizza shop was a cover for a child sex trafficking ring.
Kevin Posobiec (Real America's Voice) reports live outside Nancy Guthrie's home in the Catalina Foothills in Tucson, Arizona, on February 16, 2026.Speculation, streaming and more as Nancy Guthrie search drags on
During one lull in the story on Feb. 16, Riches spent time speculating about a business card that he had seen that was left on Nancy Guthrie's front door. The card was from a case manager for Arizona's Adult Protective Services division.
Riches speculated that there might have been an open case of elder abuse. There was not.
A Republic reporter saw the card on Feb. 3 while taking photographs at the front door. A reporter called the phone number listed. An agent said the card was left after Nancy Guthrie’s disappearance, not before.
It was left so Nancy Guthrie, an older adult who lived alone, could contact the agency if she needed services once she returned home safely. The Republic did not report on the card at the time.
Riches, approached by The Republic while walking near the home of Annie Guthrie, said he didn’t want to be interviewed. But he did respond to questions, all the while live streaming.
He said people were hooked on the case because of the "mystery" and that he was forced into speculating because officials were not providing a steady stream of facts.
"A lack of information leads to speculation," Riches said. A self-described "journalist," Riches has a legal history of his own.
In 2016, Riches faced a felony conviction for filing a phony lawsuit against former U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, who was nearly assassinated in 2011 outside a grocery store in the same Catalina Foothills neighborhood where Nancy Guthrie's house stands.
In March 2016, according to a criminal complaint, he filed a civil action against Giffords, posing as Jared Loughner, the gunman who tried to kill her. The complaint sought $25 million. Riches pleaded guilty to a charge of making false statements in September 2018, according to court records, and was sentenced to five years' probation.
He told The Republic that he filed the lawsuit while he was serving federal prison time for a wire fraud conviction. He said he filed that fake lawsuit, and others, along with other inmates, as a joke that helped pass the time. The lawsuit against Giffords, he said, was in bad taste.
Riches walked to his vehicle parked outside Annie Guthrie's house and headed back to where other media were congregating outside Nancy Guthrie’s house.
On his live stream, he talked about the pending story that would be published by The Arizona Republic and azcentral.com and wondered whether it would be a "hit piece."
Riches said that the story might say that "these true-crimers are causing lots of havoc."
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Nancy Guthrie case invaded by amateur detectives , true crime buffs
Source: “AOL Entertainment”
