Nancy Guthrie kidnapping: DNA results will lead to 'three parallel realities', former FBI agent says
&imwidth=600&imheight=450&format=webp&quality=medium "Nancy Guthrie kidnapping: DNA results will lead to 'three parallel realities', former FBI agent says")
DNA on glove will not be end-all of Nancy Guthrie kidnapping case. Photograph: (AFP)
Nancy Guthrie kidnapping case: DNA on a glove found outside her home might not be conclusive evidence, an expert has said. He has cautioned that the entire case cannot be based on one single piece of evidence and forensic report.
Nancy Guthrie has been missing for 16 days with no clues about her whereabouts. Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos said that all of her family members have been cleared as suspects in her disappearance. Meanwhile, DNA results on a glove found at her door are being awaited and are expected to pin down the culprit. However, according to a retired FBI agent, this forensic development might not be the final nail that many are expecting. "To be clear…the Guthrie family – to include all siblings and spouses – has been cleared as possible suspects in this case," Nanos said in a Monday afternoon statement. "The family has been nothing but cooperative and gracious and are victims in this case." Notably, Nancy's son-in-law, Tommaso Cioni, the husband of Savannah Guthrie’s sister, Annie, was being flagged as a suspect by some people, especially since he was the last person to see her on February 1. "The Guthrie family are victims plain and simple…please, I’m begging you, the media to honour your profession and report with some sense of compassion and professionalism."
Former FBI Jason Pack told Fox News that even though DNA is one of the most powerful tools, "it’s also one of the most misunderstood by the public." He added that the DNA results will lead to "three parallel realities." First, if they find a match with a known person, it cannot be considered conclusive proof. Investigators will need to check the chain of custody, whether contamination was a possibility and the chances of a secondary transfer. "A match doesn’t automatically equal guilt...a match accelerates your investigation. It doesn’t close it," Pack stated.
The second scenario is one where the DNA matches an unknown individual. Again, it would be treated in the same way as above, but now investigators have a wider playing field. It wouldn't end the existing theory, but simply add another one. The third possibility is where the tests throw up inconclusive or degraded results. This can happen due to environmental exposure, or because of the material of the glove or low-copy-number DNA. Pack said, it means you can neither exonerate anyone, nor implicate them.
Nancy Guthrie kidnapping evidence
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He further cautioned against public opinion building around one piece of evidence, in this case, the glove. Pack said gloves can be "discarded, dropped or blown around." So it is also important to establish a connection with the crime. The investigators have five key pieces of evidence in the Nancy Guthrie missing case. First is the doorbell video showing a masked man, who is estimated to be 5 feet, 10 inches tall, according to the FBI. Second is the DNA sample from an unknown person from inside Guthrie's home. Third is blood found on her front porch that matches Guthrie's.
