Neighbors share support for Guthrie family, leaving yellow flowers and notes of hope

The desperate search for Savannah Guthrie's mother, Nancy Guthrie, is now in its 12th day. 

Investigators are pleading with people to share home surveillance camera footage from specific dates in the Tucson, Ariz., neighborhood where Guthrie lived as they deal with thousands of tips in their hope to crack the case.

The TODAY Show began with an update on the case Thursday morning. Here are the latest developments:

• 9:34 p.m.: Neighbors are sharing their support with the family leaving flowers and notes of hope outside of Guthrie's home in Tucson. The Catalina Foothills Association emailed residents encouraging them to bring yellow flowers to the curb of the home. Yellow flowers and ribbons are often a sign for waiting on someone's return. 
• 8:16 p.m.: Law enforcement officials said in a briefing a man who was seen near the gate of the Tucson home the night of Guthrie's disappearance in a security video has been cleared. Officials said the video shows a man in a gray hooded top, jeans and two backpacks near the gate of a nearby home at 1:52 a.m.

• 7:41 p.m.: The man accused of fake ransom note to Nancy Guthrie’s family made his first court appearance Thursday where he was released before trial. Derrick Callella, 42, He was accused of sending a fake ransom note to Nancy Guthrie’s family. He allegedly sent demands by two text messages to Guthrie’s family on Wednesday, Feb. 4, and allegedly made a 9-second phone call to a family member, according to prosecutors.

• 6:17 p.m. The FBI used video footage gathered from cameras at and near the home of Nancy Guthrie to formulate a description of the suspect in her apparent kidnapping. According to NBC News, that person is a man, 5'9" to 5'10" with an average build. In the images, he appears to be carrying a black, 24-liter Ozark Trail Hiker Pack backpack.
• In a post on X on Thursday, FBI agents said the reward for information has increased up to $100,000.
• 6:05 p.m. NBC News reported that the network had seen video recorded on a home surveillance camera about four miles from Nancy Guthrie's home that showed a man in a grey hoodie and jeans and carrying two backpacks at 1:52 a.m. on the night she disappeared.
• 5:10 p.m. New security camera video from about five miles away from Nancy Guthrie's home shows a person wearing a backpack. Investigators asked again if anyone can identify that person. Video and photos released from Guthrie's camera -- which police said was disabled around the time of her disappearance -- also showed a person wearing a similar backpack.
• 4:50 p.m. Investigators went door to door to ask Nancy Guthrie's neighbors for any security video they might have that shows any vehicles or anything unusual in the overnight hours between Jan. 31 and Feb. 1. The TODAY anchor's mother was last seen on the night of Jan. 31 and reported missing on the morning of Feb. 1.

• 3:41 p.m.: Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos has said Guthrie does not have cognitive issues, characterizing her as “sharp as a tack.” However, he said, she has limited mobility and needs to take medication daily or “it could be fatal.”

• 2:15 p.m.: Gloves found at Nancy Guthrie's house are being sent out for testing, according to the Pima County Sheriff's Department. The department told NBC News that "several items of evidence" were found at Guthrie's home, but they did not offer details about what that evidence was.

• 1:30 p.m.: Media outlets from across the country and world are along the entire street in front of Guthrie's home in the Catalina Foothills as the investigation into her disappearance continues.
• 11 a.m.: A white tent has been erected outside Guthrie's home. An FBI official told NBC News that they had no comment on the tent.
• Savannah Guthrie shared a video of her mother in happier times writing, "our lovely mom. we will never give up on her."

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A post shared by Savannah Guthrie (@savannahguthrie)

• Thursday marks 12 days since Guthrie, 84, was taken from her Tucson-area home and one week since the last press briefing from the Pima County, Arizona, sheriff.
• Investigators are searching Nancy Guthrie's neighborhood for new clues or leads. A pair of black gloves was located in the search and has been sent for DNA analysis.
• Investigators have received more than 4,000 new calls or tips since surveillance images from Nancy Guthrie's doorbell camera were released on Tuesday. Soon after the images were released, authorities detained a man during a traffic stop south of Tucson. He was questioned and later released.
• Neighbors of Nancy Guthrie say they have received alerts from investigators requesting footage from their own security cameras for specific dates and times, including Jan. 11 between 9 p.m. - midnight (more than three weeks before she disappeared) and Jan. 31 between 9:30 a.m. and 11 a.m.

TUCSON, Ariz. (AP) — Fresh surveillance images from Nancy Guthrie’s porch the night she went missing, coupled with intense police activity across Arizona and the detention of a man had raised hopes that authorities were nearing a major break.  

But then the man was released after questioning, leaving it unclear Wednesday where the investigation stood into last week’s disappearance of Guthrie, the 84-year-old mother of “Today” show host Savannah Guthrie.

FBI agents carrying water bottles to beat the 80-degree F (26.7-degree C) heat walked among rocks and desert vegetation at Guthrie's Tucson-area home. They also fanned out across a neighborhood about a mile (1.6 kilometers) away, knocking on doors and searching through cactuses, bushes and boulders.

Several hundred detectives and agents are now assigned to the investigation, which is expanding in the area, the Pima County Sheriff's Department said.

In a nearby neighborhood, two investigators emerged from daughter Annie Guthrie’s home with a paper grocery sack and a white trash bag. One, still wearing blue protective gloves, also took a stack of mail from the roadside mailbox. They drove away without speaking to reporters.

Barb Dutrow, who was jogging through a neighborhood where teams were searching, said an FBI agent told her they were looking for anything that might have been tossed from a car. Dutrow, who was visiting from Louisiana for a convention, said she "can't imagine the feeling of the family of having their mother taken.”

FBI photos of masked person with backpack, gun holster

A day earlier, authorities said they had stopped a man near the U.S.-Mexico border, just hours after the FBI released videos of a person wearing a gun holster, ski mask and backpack and approaching Nancy Guthrie's home in Tucson. The man told media outlets early Wednesday that he was released after several hours and had nothing to do with Guthrie's disappearance last week.

Authorities have not said what led them to stop the man Tuesday but confirmed he was released. The sheriff's department said its deputies and FBI agents also searched a location in Rio Rico, a city south of Tucson where the man lives.

It was the latest twist in an investigation that has gripped the nation since Nancy Guthrie disappeared on Feb. 1. Until Tuesday, it seemed authorities were making little headway in determining what happened to her or finding who was responsible.

The black and white images released by the FBI showing a masked person trying to cover a doorbell camera on Guthrie’s porch marked the first significant break in the case. But the images did not show what happened to her or help determine whether she is still alive.

According to reports from CNN, investigators are looking at the type of backpack the person was carrying in Nancy Guthrie’s doorbell camera footage,

CNN said the backpack appears to be an Ozark Trail Hiker Pack. Ozark Trail is Walmart’s private-label outdoor brand.

FBI Director Kash Patel said investigators spent days trying to find lost, corrupted or inaccessible images.

Even though the images do not show the person's face, investigators are hopeful someone will know who was on the porch. More than 4,000 calls came into the Pima County sheriff's tip line within the past 24 hours, the department said Wednesday afternoon.

Authorities have said for more than a week that they believe Nancy Guthrie was taken against her will. She was last seen at home Jan. 31 and reported missing the next day. DNA tests showed blood on her porch was hers, authorities said.

Savannah Guthrie posted the new surveillance images on social media and said the family believes their mother is still alive.

The longtime NBC host and her two siblings have indicated a willingness to pay a ransom.

It is not known whether ransom notes demanding money with deadlines that have already passed were authentic, and whether the family has had any contact with whoever took Guthrie.

TMZ reported it received a message Wednesday from someone claiming to know the kidnapper’s identity and that they unsuccessfully tried to reach Savannah Guthrie’s brother and sister. The person asked for bitcoin in exchange for the information, TMZ said. The FBI did not immediately respond to a message.

Authorities have said Nancy Guthrie takes several medications and there was concern from the start that she could die without them.

Here is a timeline of events:

Saturday, Jan. 31

5:32 p.m. — Nancy Guthrie takes an Uber to her family's home for dinner.

9:48 p.m. — Guthrie is dropped off at her Tucson, Arizona, home by a family member. The garage door opens and closes minutes later.

Sunday, Feb. 1

1:47 a.m. — The doorbell camera is disconnected.

2:12 a.m. — The camera's software detects movement. Investigators initially said that there was no video available since Guthrie didn't have an active subscription to the company. But digital forensics experts kept working to find images in backend software that might've been lost, corrupted or inaccessible.

2:28 a.m. — Her pacemaker app disconnects from her phone.

11:56 a.m. — Her family checks on her after learning she did not attend church.

12:03 p.m. — The family calls 911 to report a missing person.

12:15 p.m. — Investigators arrive and launch a search operation, including the use of drones and search dogs.

6:46 p.m. — The Pima County Sheriff’s Department posts on social media to announce Guthrie’s disappearance.

Monday, Feb. 2

Authorities announce in the morning that they believe Guthrie was kidnapped, abducted or otherwise taken against her will.

KOLD-TV says it received an email Monday night that appears to be a ransom note. The note includes a demand for money with a deadline set for 5 p.m. Thursday and a second one for Monday, investigators said.

Savannah Guthrie posts a message on Instagram on Monday night asking for people's prayers.

Tuesday, Feb. 3

A person familiar with the investigation tells The Associated Press that investigators found signs of forced entry at Nancy Guthrie's home.

President Donald Trump tells reporters that the situation is “terrible.”

Wednesday, Feb. 4

After turning back Guthrie's property to her family earlier in the week, authorities return to the home for a “follow-up investigation.”

That evening, Savannah Guthrie posts a video on social media in which she tells her mother’s kidnapper that her family is ready to talk but wants proof their mom is alive.

Thursday, Feb. 5

Officials reveal that a DNA test of blood found on the home’s front porch showed it came from Nancy Guthrie.

The FBI offers a $50,000 reward for information about Guthrie’s whereabouts.

Tucson TV station KOLD receives a new message, via email, tied to the Guthrie case. The station says it can't disclose its contents. The FBI says it's aware of a new message and is reviewing its authenticity.

Investigators return to Guthrie’s neighborhood to gather more evidence. The president of the Catalina Foothills Association, a neighborhood group, thanks residents in a letter for being willing to speak with law enforcement, share camera images and allow their properties to be searched.

Saturday, Feb. 7

Savannah Guthrie releases another video on social media directly engaging with her mother's potential abductors.

“We received your message, and we understand. We beg you now to return our mother to us so that we can celebrate with her,” she said, flanked by her siblings. “This is the only way we will have peace. This is very valuable to us, and we will pay.”

Sunday, Feb. 8

Detectives and FBI agents do follow-up work at multiple locations, the sheriff's department says. An investigator is seen using a pole to search an underground tank behind Nancy Guthrie’s home.

Monday, Feb. 9

Savannah Guthrie posts another video on Instagram, saying her family is at an “hour of desperation” and they believe Nancy Guthrie is still out there. Savannah Guthrie asked for prayers and for people to report anything they might see or hear to law enforcement. No ransom note was mentioned.

A spokesperson for the FBI said the agency was not aware of ongoing communication between Nancy Guthrie’s family and the suspected kidnappers, despite a deadline set for Monday evening.

Tuesday, Feb. 10

The FBI says it managed to recover doorbell camera video of what it described as an armed person tampering with a camera at Guthrie's front door.

Video showed the person wearing a backpack and ski mask with holes for the eyes and mouth. The person tries to cover a camera near the front door with their gloved hand before ripping out a plant from the yard to block the camera's view.

Following the FBI's announcement, Savannah Guthrie posts images of the apparent kidnapper on Instagram. She writes: “We believe she is still alive. Bring her home,” and includes phone numbers for the FBI and county sheriff.

Later, the Pima County sheriff’s department says a person was detained for questioning during a traffic stop south of Tucson. The man is released. He tells reporters that he made deliveries in the Tucson area.

The sheriff's department also says it searched a location in Rio Rico, a city south of Tucson, with the help of the FBI.

On Tuesday, Savannah Guthrie said she and her family believe the mother is still alive. "We believe she is still out there. Bring her home," she said.

Wednesday, Feb. 11

Overnight, a man was questioned and released regarding Nancy Guthrie's disappearance. The man's home was also searched in Rio Rico, Arizona.

The man, who identified himself as Carlos Palazuelos, answered reporter questions outside the home early Wednesday. He said that he was pulled over by police near his home on Tuesday and detained for several hours.

Palazuelos said that was questioned because his eyes resembled the masked man seen in surveillance video and photos taken outside of Guthrie's home released by the FBI on Tuesday.

"All I know is they showed by in-law a picture of somebody wearing a mask or something and it supposedly looked like my eyes," Palazuelos told reporters early Wednesday.

The man said he did not remember if he had delivered anything to Guthrie’s house. He said investigators took his phone and questioned him.

"Man, I hope they get the suspect, because I'm not it," he told reporters.

Local and federal authorities have not confirmed that Palazuelos was questioned in the case. They have only confirmed that a person was detained for questioning during a traffic stop south of Tucson and was released.

FBI officials told NBC News that tips have "dramatically increased" since releasing images and videos showing a potential suspect tampering with a doorbell camera outside of Guthrie's home. 

The FBI office in Phoenix shared on social media that they would conduct an extensive search along multiple roadways in the Catalina Foothills as part of their investigation. 

Also on Wednesday, TMZ said it received another note from someone claiming to have information about Nancy Guthrie's kidnapper. TMZ said it forwarded it to the FBI. 

TMZ said the sender claims they've tried to reach Savannah Guthrie's siblings. 

They are asking for 1 Bitcoin in exchange for information, according to TMZ. 

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Associated Press reporters Hallie Golden in Seattle, John Seewer in Toledo, Ohio, and Ed White in Detroit contributed to this report.