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Court Orders Treatment for Fake Ransom‑Note Sender as FBI Says Nancy Guthrie’s Kidnapper Remains Unknown

The ruling underscores how hoax messages have diverted resources and complicated the search for Guthrie, whose disappearance is still being treated as a suspected kidnapping.

Overview

  • Nancy Guthrie, 84, vanished from her Tucson home and was reported missing to authorities in late January and early February, and the FBI continues to treat the case as a suspected kidnapping for ransom.
  • A federal judge on July 10 ordered Derrick Anthony Callella, who pleaded guilty to sending fraudulent ransom messages, to enter inpatient substance‑use treatment or a halfway house until his September 10 sentencing.
  • The FBI says Callella harassed the family with fake notes but is not believed to be the person who abducted Guthrie, and no one has been publicly charged in the disappearance.
  • Investigators continue forensic work on multiple leads, including blood found on the porch and street, pacemaker telemetry that stopped early in the morning, surveillance and doorbell video, DNA testing and blockchain tracing tied to ransom‑style demands.
  • Authorities are seeking tips about the masked person seen on doorbell footage and the Guthrie family is offering up to $1 million for credible information while officials warn that hoax messages and media speculation can slow the probe.