A person who was detained for questioning in the investigation into Nancy Guthrie’s disappearance has been released, and insists he has never even heard of the 84-year-old.
The man was brought in for questioning on Tuesday in connection with the alleged kidnapping of the mother of Today show co-host Savannah Guthrie.
The man, who identified himself to reporters only as Carlos, has already been released by authorities after being detained by law enforcement in Rio Rico, around an hour’s drive south of Tucson, Arizona.
Speaking to reporters outside his home, Carlos said he had no idea why he was brought in for questioning and that he just works as a delivery driver in Tucson.
“I felt like I was being kidnapped. They didn’t tell me anything at the beginning,” Carlos said.
“They held me against my will,” he added. “They didn’t even read me my rights until two hours later.”
“What the f--- am I doing here? I didn’t do anything to be honest, I’m innocent.”
In another interview with ABC 15 Arizona, Carlos said: “They told me I was being detained for kidnapping. And I asked him, I was kidnapping of who? And they told me this lady, I don’t know her name.”
“Nancy Guthrie?” reporter Ford Hatchett asks. “Yeah, that’s her,” Carlos replied, with a nod of his head.
He added, “I told him, I work in Tucson for GLS. I might have delivered a package to her house, but I never kidnap anybody.”
Carlos said he was in custody for around eight hours until he was allowed to leave. He added that he had “never heard” of Nancy Guthrie until he was brought in for questioning.
“I hope they get the suspect, because I’m not it. And they better do their job and find the suspect that did it so they can clear my name, I’m done,” Carlos said.
The man was detained after the FBI released chilling video footage and photos of a person in a ski mask and gloves appearing to tamper with Nancy Guthrie’s security camera at her home.
FBI Director Kash Patel—who has faced criticism for his handling of other high-profile investigations—had earlier boasted to Fox News’ Sean Hannity that the agency was looking into “persons of interest” in connection with Guthrie’s disappearance and that “substantial progress” had been made in the case.
Officials did not reveal if they believed the man they brought in for questioning was the same person seen in the Nest doorbell footage.
On Tuesday night, the mother-in-law of the man detained and released by authorities said that Carlos had nothing to do with the abduction of Nancy Gutherie.
The woman, Josefina, added that her son-in-law does not look anything like the man seen in the black-and-white surveillance footage released by the FBI.
Nancy Guthrie was dropped off at her home at around 9:48 p.m by her family on the night of Jan. 31. At 1:47 a.m., the doorbell camera at her home disconnected, according to Pima County Sheriff’s Department.
The 84-year-old was then reported missing by her family on Feb.1, and she has not been seen since.
Police are investigating alleged ransom notes left by the kidnappers demanding a Bitcoin payment for the 84-year-old’s safe release. Both original payment deadlines allegedly included in the notes have since passed.
TMZ, which received the first alleged ransom note, is now reporting that there has been “activity” in the Bitcoin account listed in that note, without providing further details.
Savannah Guthrie, host of NBC News’ morning show Today, posted a video on Instagram asking for the public’s help in finding her mother as the family’s “nightmare” continues.
“We believe our mom is still out there. We need your help,” she said. “Law enforcement is working tirelessly around the clock, trying to bring her home, trying to find her.
“If you see anything, you hear anything, if there’s anything at all that seems strange to you, that you report to law enforcement. We are at an hour of desperation, and we need your help.”
