Nancy Guthrie’s daughter, Savannah Guthrie, is offering a $1 million reward for the return of her 84-year-old mother, who remains missing. A source has now explained to Page Six the tactic behind Savannah’s latest move.
The source told the outlet that the family hopes the reward will “help stimulate or further incentivize” a lead or tip from “someone who has thus far been reluctant” to come forward. “The family first raised this on the first day of the investigation and has been ready to do this ever since,” the insider said, adding that until now, the family had been advised to hold off on offering their own incentive.
“They were advised by all involved in the investigation that doing so earlier might overwhelm the infrastructure set up to field leads, tens of thousands of which have been coming in organically,” the source added.
Read More | Nancy Guthrie update: Police break silence after ‘suspect in different stages of attire’ theory sparks buzz
The source further said, “This action was taken after careful consultation and in coordination with law enforcement. The family continues to stay in lock step with authorities on the search/investigation.”
Former CIA member and FBI special agent Tracy Walder also weighed in on the reward, saying, “Their mindset is they want their mom back. And they’re going to do everything they can.”
Savannah Guthrie’s new video
In a new video posted via Savannah’s Instagram account early Tuesday, February 24, the ‘Today’ show host, visibly distressed, said, “Hi there. I’m coming on to say it is day 24 since our mom was taken in the dark of night from her bed, and every hour and minute and second and every long night has been agony since then of worrying about her and fearing about her, aching for her, and most of all, just missing her.”
“We know that millions of you have been praying, so many people have been praying of every faith and no faith at all. We feel those prayers. Please keep praying without ceasing. We still believe,” she continued.
She added, “We still believe in a miracle. We still believe that she can come home. … We are blowing on the embers of hope.”
In the same video, Savannah shared that the family is now offering a reward of up to $1 million for any information that leads them to Nancy.
She also noted that her mom may not be alive, considering the amount of time that has passed since her disappearance.
“She may already be gone,” Savannah tearfully said. “She may have already gone home to the Lord that she loves and is dancing in Heaven with her mom and her dad and with her beloved brother, Pierce, and with our daddy.”
However, Walder told Page Six that the remark does not mean the family has given up on hope.
“They are being logical. Their hope is [that] they just want their mom back,” the NewsNation contributor said. “At this point, they acknowledge having her back could be deceased and alive. We have hope we can physically get her back so we can celebrate her life, or celebrate her, one of the two.”