Nancy Guthrie kidnapping case: California man pleads guilty to fake ransom note

Nancy Guthrie, the 84‑year‑old mother of "Today" co‑anchor Savannah Guthrie, vanished from her Tucson, Arizona home on February 1 after being dropped off the night before. Blood found on her front porch was confirmed to be hers, and surveillance footage captured a masked individual tampering with her doorbell camera. The FBI is treating the disappearance as a kidnapping for ransom and has received multiple ransom communications, most of which experts deem hoaxes.

On July 2, a California resident, Derrick Cajera (also reported as Derrick Callella), pleaded guilty in federal court to two counts of harassment using a telecommunication device for sending a fraudulent ransom note demanding Bitcoin. He received five years of probation with sentencing set for September 10, facing up to two years in prison and a $250,000 fine. The FBI continues to investigate the case, stating that some notes may be legitimate while others are extortion attempts, and no suspects have been publicly identified.