An independent search is underway near the U.S.-Mexico border for the remains of Nancy Guthrie after an anonymous tip about where her body might be, but Mexican authorities say they have found no evidence to back it up.
The Mexican volunteer search group Buscando Corazones Nogales told local media it coordinated the search with local authorities. In a statement, the Pima County Sheriff's Department said it was aware of reports about the tip but had not been contacted by Mexican authorities. "This investigation remains active and ongoing, and we will continue to follow up on any credible information," the department wrote.
Mexican officials were blunter. They said there is no evidence to support a search in Nogales, and that there are no objective signs that Nancy Guthrie entered, stayed in or traveled through Sonora. The attorney general of the Mexican state involved said verification by the prosecutor's office had not uncovered any information, even preliminary, that would support a line of inquiry tied to her possible presence there.
Guthrie, 84, was abducted from her Tucson home in the early hours of Feb. 1, and the case remains unresolved. Authorities released surveillance images from outside her house, but the person who took her remains unidentified. The search now underway adds a cross-border twist to an investigation that has already drawn intense scrutiny on both sides of the border.
The new search effort comes after a series of recent developments in the case. On Thursday, the sheriff's department said 54-year-old Alexander Zabel Jr. was arrested in front of Guthrie's home after several complaints about his behavior, and officials said he was reportedly livestreaming from outside the residence when he was taken into custody. A sergeant was knocked to the ground during the arrest attempt.
FBI Director Kash Patel said last month that the FBI was shut out of the investigation for the first four days after Guthrie disappeared, while the Pima County Sheriff's Office said there was no delay in coordination with the bureau. For now, the only concrete step is the one already under way: investigators on one side of the border are being asked to weigh an anonymous tip that officials on the other side say is not supported by evidence.
Anyone with information is asked to contact the Pima County Sheriff's Department at 520-351-4900 or the FBI at 1-800-CALL-FBI.
