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Nancy Guthrie missing case: Why release of doorbell camera footage take so long?

Nancy Guthrie missing case: Why release of doorbell camera footage take so long?

FBI could not access Nancy Guthrie doorbell camera video for several days. Photograph: (FBI)

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Nancy Guthrie missing case: A person has been detained in the suspected kidnapping of Nancy Guthrie. Earlier, the FBI released the doorbell video showing the suspect in a mask, holding a gun and wearing a backpack. Why did it take so long?

The doorbell camera video from Nancy Guthrie's home was finally released nearly 10 days after she went missing. The FBI could not access it all this time because of a technical problem, and had to get innovative to get its hands on it. Meanwhile, a man was detained for questioning hours after a Monday ransom deadline ended. The Pima County Sheriff’s Department held the man during a traffic stop south of Tucson. "The subject is currently being questioned in connection to the Nancy Guthrie investigation," the department said on Tuesday night. He was later released. Earlier in the day, the department had released a security video showing the suspect at the door in a mask. The footage is from the doorbell camera and shows a masked man carrying a backpack and a gun going up to Guthrie’s home just before her disappearance. It is not clear whether the man detained is the same person seen on camera, and officials have yet to release any additional information. ABC News first reported about the arrest after 7 pm local time in Arizona, citing an unnamed law enforcement official. Describing the man seen on camera, FBI Director Kash Patel said he was “an armed individual appearing to have tampered with the camera at Nancy Guthrie's front door the morning of her disappearance.”

Why was the release of Nancy Guthrie's doorbell camera footage delayed?

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Sheriff Chris Nanos of Pima County, Arizona, said that the camera on her door had been disconnected before she went missing. Nancy did not have a subscription to the service, otherwise the video would have automatically saved. This made recovering the footage difficult for investigators, and they had to work with a tech company. Kash Patel said the bureau was able to collect the video from “backend systems.” The intruder was captured on the internet-connected Google Nest camera, and it is not clear how the video was retrieved despite not being saved. Experts say cloud-based cameras have a complex infrastructure which can make such retrieval possible.

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Physical details of the suspect are visible in the doorbell camera video

The man in the video has notable facial hair around the mouth and distinctive eyebrows visible through the mask. The backpack has reflectors, and he is wearing a zip-up jacket and light-coloured running shoes. On Tuesday (February 10), law enforcement officers searched the Tucson neighbourhood of Annie Guthrie, Savannah Guthrie's sister. This is the area where their 84-year-old mother spent the evening before she disappeared on February 1. Earlier on Monday, Savannah Guthrie released another video, urging people to report suspicious activity to help find their mother.

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Anamica Singh

Anamica Singh is a Senior News Editor at WION, bringing over 17 years of deep media and journalism experience to the platform. Specialising in high-impact global journalism, she le...Read More