FBI Deems 3 Nancy Guthrie Ransom Notes Fraudulent as Bitcoin Test Payment Goes Untouched
Updated
Updated · Hollywood Reporter · Jul 1
FBI Deems 3 Nancy Guthrie Ransom Notes Fraudulent as Bitcoin Test Payment Goes Untouched
3 articles · Updated · Hollywood Reporter · Jul 1
Summary
Three ransom notes tied to Nancy Guthrie’s disappearance were deemed fraudulent by federal investigators, undercutting the theory that Savannah Guthrie’s 84-year-old mother was abducted for ransom.
An FBI test payment sent to the Bitcoin address named in the notes has not been touched, and agents said that result plus other investigative methods showed the messages were not genuine.
The notes included two demands for millions of dollars in Bitcoin after Nancy Guthrie vanished on Jan. 31 and a third message last week claiming to have video of her abductors and of her on the day of her death.
The FBI’s Phoenix office said some ransom demands in the case were extortion attempts without legitimacy, but other demands could still be legitimate and the case remains under investigation as a kidnapping for ransom.