Trump threatens death penalty for Nancy Guthrie kidnappers after Savannah’s desperate plea
President Donald Trump has threatened Nancy Guthrie’s kidnappers with the death penalty if the 84-year-old is found dead.
The elderly mother of Today host Savannah Guthrie was seized from her Tucson home on January 31 as the hunt for the perpetrators intensifies.
Trump issued the threat Monday and told The New York Post that Nancy Guthrie’s abductors would receive “the most severe” consequences in a brief phone interview.
The president was pressed whether his comment meant he would instruct the Justice Department to pursue the death penalty. “The most, yeah — that’s true,” he reportedly replied.
Trump earlier weighed in on the case and praised former FBI special agent Nicole Parker for her coverage of the case on Fox News, where she is a contributor.
“Nicole Parker, formerly of the FBI, is doing a great job of explaining, on FoxNews, the Nancy Guthrie investigation,” Trump said on Truth Social. “Others also, working so hard, with such expertise and knowledge. Hopefully there will be a positive result!”
The president’s remarks strike a different tone from Savannah Guthrie in her latest appeal for more information.
In a video shared Sunday night, she spoke directly to anyone who might have abducted her mother and said, “it is never too late to do the right thing.”
“It’s been two weeks since our mom was taken, and I just wanted to come on and say that we still have hope, and we still believe,” she said. “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, and we are here.”
“We believe in the essential goodness of every human being, and it’s never too late,” she added.
Trump was asked by reporters on Friday if he believed Mexican cartels or a foreign country is involved in Nancy Guthrie’s disappearance.
“You can’t say that yet; it’s a little bit early,” he replied. “But it’s, uh, somebody either knew what they were doing very well or they were rank amateurs. Either way, it’s not a good situation.”
It comes as the FBI reportedly said a glove found two miles from Nancy Guthrie’s home could match the gloves worn by a masked and “armed” suspect seen outside her front door the morning she vanished.
The glove has been sent for DNA testing. While investigators have received the preliminary results, they’re still waiting on official confirmation, according to the Associated Press.
The FBI has described the suspect as a man with an average build who is between 5’9” and 5’10” tall. He was wearing a black, 25l “Ozark Trail Hiker Pack” backpack, the agency noted.
