A woman was found dead along a canal in Phoenix on Friday, and the discovery immediately sparked speculation about a possible connection to the disappearance of Nancy Guthrie, the 84-year-old mother of "Today" co-anchor Savannah Guthrie.
Phoenix police responded to a call indicating that an adult female was unresponsive on a nearby canal bank. Officers arrived, located the woman, and pronounced her deceased on scene. No identifying information about the woman has been released.
The Pima County Sheriff's Department told Fox News Digital it has not been alerted to any connection between the body and the Guthrie case. The remains were found more than 100 miles from Tucson, where Nancy Guthrie was last seen.
A case that has gripped the nation
Nancy Guthrie, 84, was last seen at her home near Tucson on Jan. 31 and went missing on Feb. 1. Doorbell camera footage from the night before, police believe, she was kidnapped captured a masked man, possibly two different men, loitering on her doorstep. Police believe she was kidnapped.
A large amount of evidence was recovered from the home, including traces of blood, and it is still being investigated, the NY Post reported. Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos warned it could take up to "a year" to analyze the evidence, particularly the material containing DNA.
That timeline alone should concern anyone following this case. An elderly woman vanishes from her home with signs of foul play, masked figures on her doorstep the night before, blood evidence inside, and the public is told the forensic work could stretch into 2027.
The slow pace of the investigation has frustrated Guthrie's loved ones, and it is not difficult to understand why. Some 300 to 400 personnel were assigned to the case when it was first opened. Whether that level of commitment has been sustained remains an open question.
A family's desperate plea
On Feb. 4, Savannah Guthrie and her siblings, Annie and Camron, released a video message pleading for their mother's safe return, addressing anyone who might be holding their elderly mother. Savannah Guthrie has offered a $1 million cash reward for information leading to her mother's safe return or recovery.
A million-dollar reward from a private family is extraordinary. It also signals something uncomfortable: a family that feels the machinery of law enforcement, despite the hundreds of personnel nominally assigned, is not moving fast enough to bring their mother home.
What we still don't know
The honest answer right now is: almost everything that matters. Phoenix police have released no identifying information about the woman found along the canal. The Pima County Sheriff's Department says it has no indication the two cases are linked. The distance between Phoenix and Tucson, more than 100 miles, is significant but hardly eliminates the possibility.
Speculation is running ahead of the facts, which is what happens when investigations move at a pace that feels glacial to a terrified family and a watching public. When authorities leave informational vacuums, people fill them. That is not irresponsible public behavior. It is the predictable consequence of slow-drip communication from agencies holding all the cards.
There is a human being at the center of this. An 84-year-old woman who was in her own home, in her own country, and apparently was taken from it. Whatever the identity of the woman found in Phoenix, Nancy Guthrie is still missing. Her family is still waiting. And the clock is still running.
