A retired FBI agent says she received four emails demanding bitcoin in connection with the disappearance of Nancy Guthrie, the 84-year-old mother of NBC Today co-anchor Savannah Guthrie, raising concerns that scammers are exploiting the ongoing investigation.
Jennifer Coffindaffer, a former FBI agent and NewsNation law and justice contributor, received the messages in April and reported them to federal investigators without responding to the senders, she told Newsweek in an interview published October 6.
“I never responded to any of them,” Coffindaffer said. “I went straight to the FBI with them.”
Coffindaffer believes the messages came from scammers rather than the people responsible for Guthrie’s disappearance.
Two of the emails demanded 25 bitcoin, while a later message reduced the demand to 2 bitcoin, according to reporting based on the messages reviewed by Newsweek.
The emails also included an image resembling Guthrie with a shaved head, dirt on her face and a tear running down her cheek, Coffindaffer told NewsNation.
The messages contained personal information about Coffindaffer, including a private email address she rarely used, and referenced her religious beliefs.
“I’m pretty religious, I’m a devout Catholic, and they certainly worked that angle in their ransom notes to me,” Coffindaffer told NewsNation.
Similar Message Sent to Guthrie’s Neighbor
Coffindaffer decided to discuss the emails publicly after learning that Lauren Serpa, a neighbor of Guthrie’s, had received a similar message in September.
Serpa shared information about the message on Facebook, including an image that Coffindaffer said closely resembled the one she received.
“That’s the reason I wanted to come forward because I was concerned that now other people might be contacted and might fall for the ploy,” Coffindaffer told NewsNation.
Coffindaffer suspects an organized group may be behind the communications, although investigators have not publicly established such a connection.
The Pima County Sheriff’s Department announced September 29 that investigators had examined another possible ransom message and determined it lacked credibility.
“… Scammers may attempt to take advantage of this situation. Do not send money or provide personal information in response to unsolicited messages,” the department warned.
Authorities said the investigation into Guthrie’s disappearance remains active.
Search for Nancy Guthrie Continues
Nancy Guthrie disappeared from her Catalina Foothills home near Tucson, Arizona, after she was last seen on the evening of January 31.
The FBI and Pima County Sheriff’s Department are investigating her disappearance. The FBI has said Guthrie is a vulnerable adult who has difficulty walking, has a pacemaker and requires daily medication for a heart condition.
Investigators believe she was taken against her will, but authorities have not publicly identified or charged anyone with her abduction.
The case has generated numerous purported ransom communications, including messages demanding cryptocurrency.
Federal investigators previously determined that some ransom communications were hoaxes or lacked credibility, as The Dallas Express reported in July.
The FBI has released surveillance footage showing an armed individual appearing to tamper with a camera outside Guthrie’s home around the time of her disappearance and continues to seek information from the public.
Savannah Guthrie and her family have offered a $1 million reward for information leading to Nancy’s recovery. The FBI separately lists a reward of up to $100,000 for information leading to her location or the arrest and conviction of anyone involved in her disappearance.
More than eight months after Guthrie vanished, investigators are still seeking information that could lead them to her and identify whoever is responsible.
Provided by Dallas Express
