Two men who were detained and questioned early in the desperate search for Nancy Guthrie, the missing mother of Today show anchor Savannah Guthrie, are preparing to file a $3.25 million wrongful arrest lawsuit against the Pima County sheriff.
The move comes as the investigation into Nancy’s disappearance reaches the six-month mark with no arrests, no confirmed suspects and no sign of the 84-year-old woman since she vanished from her Tucson, Arizona, home.
Nancy was last seen safe on February 1. Authorities, including the FBI, believe she was kidnapped. Investigators have followed multiple leads and reportedly found blood spatters inside her home, but the case remains painfully unresolved.
On Thursday, the Pima County Sheriff’s Department marked the grim milestone in a social media post, saying the investigation “remains active and ongoing” and again asking the public to come forward with credible information.
At the same time, authorities released two disturbing ransom-style notes that had been sent to news outlets shortly after Nancy disappeared. The FBI’s Phoenix field office and the sheriff’s department said they were making the full messages public in hopes of generating new tips about Nancy’s whereabouts and the person or people responsible.
The first note was addressed to Savannah and claimed Nancy was alive.
The writer said Nancy was “safe but scared” and demanded $4 million in bitcoin for her release. The note warned that she would only be held for a maximum of seven days and threatened that she would be killed if payment was not received.
“Your mother is aware of this and her life is in your hands,” the message said, according to authorities.
The second note, addressed to the “Guthrie Family,” claimed Nancy had died shortly after being taken.
“We did not fully grasp the seriousness of her physical condition,” the note read. “We never intended to hurt her, that was not our intention. She perished shortly after she was taken. We believe it was heart related. She is buried in nature now.”
The release of the notes came just days after Savannah posted an emotional video to Instagram, saying her family had “done our part” but remained trapped in the agony of not knowing what happened to their beloved matriarch.
The 54-year-old NBC anchor called the case “a nightmare that will not end.”
Now, a separate legal fight is brewing over how the early days of the investigation were handled.
According to NBC News and Tucson affiliate KVOA, Carlos Palazuelos and Daniel Maddox have issued a notice of claim against Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos and a detective involved in the case. A notice of claim is typically the first step before filing a lawsuit.
The claim alleges wrongful arrest, reputational damage and property damage.
Palazuelos was detained on February 10, questioned and later released without charge. He is now seeking $2.5 million, claiming he is innocent and that his home was “ransacked” during the investigation. The notice says the ordeal caused him physical, emotional and reputational harm.
Maddox was reportedly placed in handcuffs outside a home belonging to his mother, Josefina Maddox, while investigators searched the property. He was also released without charge after several hours of questioning. Maddox is seeking $500,000, while his mother is seeking $250,000 for alleged property damage.
The legal notice claims that Sheriff Nanos posted on social media that a person had been arrested and was being questioned in connection with Nancy’s disappearance. The men argue that the post, combined with statements from the sheriff’s office, made Palazuelos appear to be a suspect in the eyes of the public.
Nanos had already faced scrutiny earlier in the investigation over his handling of the high-profile case.
The sheriff became embroiled in a public dispute with the FBI after claims surfaced that his office had withheld critical evidence from federal investigators. Nanos strongly denied those allegations.
He also survived an effort in May to remove him from the case.
This week, Nanos again pushed back on criticism from FBI Director Kash Patel, who had claimed in June that agents “showed up immediately” to help but “were not let in for four days.”
Appearing on the Sharpe Exchange podcast, Nanos said Patel was “misinformed” and said the two had never spoken face-to-face.
“When information is put out there that’s not accurate, it hurts the case,” Nanos said.
The Guthrie family is offering a $1 million reward for information that leads to Nancy being found. The FBI has added a separate $100,000 reward for conclusive information.
Federal authorities have said they are searching for a man believed to be approximately 5-foot-9 to 5-foot-10 with an average build.
For now, Nancy’s family is still waiting for answers — and the investigation that began as a terrifying disappearance has now widened into a battle over alleged wrongful detentions, damaged reputations and the actions of law enforcement in one of Arizona’s most closely watched missing-person cases.
