A man who was detained in connection with the disappearance of Nancy Guthrie has been released.
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The individual, who identified himself as Carlos to the Scripps News Group, was taken into custody during a traffic stop south of Tucson, Arizona, on Tuesday.
He said that he noticed officers were following him and his wife, so they stopped before the authorities even had to turn on his lights.
He said he was detained for a kidnapping, which he was insistent he did not carry out.
Tuesday night's development followed a rapid sequence of events that played out earlier in the day.
Scripps News confirmed that a small amount of money was deposited into the bitcoin wallet identified in the original ransom note tied to the disappearance of Nancy Guthrie, who is the mother of "Today" show co-host Savannah Guthrie.
The source of the deposit is unknown, and because it is so small, it does not appear to be an attempt to pay the ransom, which was several million dollars.
Hours earlier, the FBI released images and video from a doorbell camera showing the person they believe may been involved in the abduction of Nancy Guthrie.
FBI Director Kash Patel said the images of an armed individual in a ski mask are from Nancy Guthrie's home on the morning of her disappearance.
In one of the videos, the person is seen walking up to Nancy Guthrie's front door.
Additional recovered footage, from the same camera - at the same timeline the morning of Nancy Guthrie’s disappearance. This footage is just before the original video shared, with the individual approaching Nancy Guthrie’s front door.1-800-CALL-FBI or https://t.co/h2BxNqSxkh pic.twitter.com/IgMHXWkL5X
— FBI Director Kash Patel (@FBIDirectorKash) February 10, 2026
Another video shows the individual trying to cover the doorbell camera.
Patel noted that the videos were recovered using "residual data located in backend systems." Authorities previously said the doorbell camera at Nancy Guthrie's home was disabled in the early morning hours of Feb. 1
Savannah Guthrie shared images of the masked individual on social media, saying she believes her mother is still alive.
"Bring her home," Savannah Guthrie states.
Authorities believe Nancy Guthrie was taken from her Tucson-area home against her will. After her disappearance, a ransom note was sent to KGUN, a Scripps-owned station in Tucson, as well as to another television station and TMZ.
RELATED STORY | Ransom deadline passes as search continues for Savannah Guthrie’s mother
It demanded millions in Bitcoin and threatened Nancy Guthrie’s life if payment was not made by 5 p.m. local time Monday. Authorities have not verified the note’s authenticity or confirmed it was sent by her captors.
