The people who kidnapped the mother of “Today” show host Savannah Guthrie will face the death penalty if she is not alive, President Donald Trump said on Feb. 16.
Trump told The New York Post that the abductors will face “the most severe” consequences if Nancy Guthrie is found dead.
After being asked whether that meant that federal prosecutors would seek the death penalty, the president said, “Yeah, that’s true.”
Federal law gives prosecutors the ability to seek the death penalty in kidnapping cases that result in the death of any person. Kidnapping also becomes a federal crime under a number of other circumstances, including when the kidnapping lasts for more than 24 hours.
Nancy Guthrie, 84, was last seen on the evening of Jan. 31 in Catalina Foothills, a community of about 52,400 people just outside Tucson, Arizona. Relatives said she had dinner with them before being driven home.
Her garage door opened at about 9:48 p.m. that night and closed approximately two minutes later.
Officials said that early on Feb. 1, Nancy Guthrie’s doorbell camera was disconnected. At 2:12 a.m., the camera detected movement, and about 15 minutes later, her pacemaker disconnected from the pacemaker app on her phone.
When Nancy Guthrie did not show up to church that Sunday, family members reported her missing.
A $100,000 reward is being offered for information that leads to Nancy Guthrie being located or the arrest and conviction of a suspect.
Most other gloves located by authorities came from searchers who discarded them while they were searching for Nancy Guthrie, according to the bureau.
Savannah Guthrie, 54, said in a video on Feb. 15 that people behind her mother’s disappearance should do the right thing.
“And I wanted to say to whoever has her or knows where she is, that it’s never too late. And you’re not lost or alone. And it is never too late to do the right thing. ... We believe in the essential goodness of every human being, and it’s never too late.”
