‘Hello Savannah, We Have Your Mother’

The very first ransom note sent about Nancy Guthrie was addressed to Savannah Guthrie, and the contents of the message have now been revealed. Briana Whitney, a true crime junkie, read part of the letter when she appeared on the Crime Junkie podcast with Ashley Flowers.

“Hello Savannah, we have your mother Nancy,” the note began. “She is safe, but scared. She will be held for ransom and once she is received she will be released unharmed. We will be holding her for a maximum of seven days.”

Briana explained that the first ransom letter, sent just one day after Nancy was reported missing, went on to “demand” millions of dollars with two deadlines. “What is key here, I think, is the money was demanded in USD, that’s U.S. dollars. Typically, if you’re from here, you don’t say that,” Briana pointed out.

She then revealed that the letter got “pretty demanding and snarky,” while also noting the importance of it only addressing Savannah, who is high-profile, as opposed to the entire Guthrie family.

The note continued, “Once payment is received at the Bitcoin address below, she will be released within 12 hours of deposit to a safe dropoff location back in Tucson. If the payment is not retrieved by the last deadline on Monday the 9th by 5 p.m., she will be killed. Your mother is aware of this and her life is in your hands. It is in the best interest of everyone to have this completed as soon as possible. You will not be able to contact me from here on out. There will be no negotiations. Do not play games. Law enforcement will not be able to help you.”

Officials previously revealed during a February press conference that the first ransom note ended with something only the abductor would know. Briana disclosed that information, which was that Nancy had a white smart watch on the floor near her bed, and that there was a floodlight destroyed in the backyard.

“Those two clues are what gave the FBI the wherewithal to say, ‘This is not a hoax,’ and that they were investigating this as possibly legitimate. They still are.”

A subsequent ransom note, sent months later, claimed that Nancy was dead. None of the letters have been officially declared legitimate, and one man in California was even arrested for faking a ransom note about the case.