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By Elise Hammond, CNN
(CNN) — Investigators believe Nancy Guthrie was abducted from her bed in Arizona, but they’ve been tight-lipped about what led them to that conclusion about the disappearance of the 84-year-old mother of “Today” anchor Savannah Guthrie.
Nancy Guthrie was last seen at her home in the Catalina Foothills near Tucson Saturday night and police say time is of the essence to find her, especially since she is without crucial medication she takes daily.
When law enforcement arrived at the house Sunday, they found a “very concerning” scene, said Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos, which spurred a criminal investigation.
Savannah Guthrie, who traveled to Tucson after learning her mother was missing, is now asking for prayers for her family.
What happened?
Guthrie was last seen Saturday when her family brought her home from dinner around 9:30 p.m., Nanos told CNN. They got her in the house and she went to bed, he said.
When she did not show up to church Sunday morning, a church member called her family, who went to her home around 11 a.m. to look for her, the sheriff said at a news conference Monday.
A family member called 911 around noon Sunday to report her missing, Nanos said, and homicide detectives were sent to the home.
“Something that they told me about that scene made me believe that there’s more than just a missing person,” Nanos said about the decision to set in motion a criminal investigation. “We still hope she’s alive and we continue with those missions of search and rescue.”
Nanos said investigators believe she was abducted from her bed “but cannot speak as to why.” Officials do not know what time Guthrie was taken, Nanos added.
What have investigators found at the house?
Law enforcement is treating Guthrie’s house as a crime scene and has described the circumstances around her disappearance as suspicious, Nanos has said.
The case is “not dementia-related,” Nanos said at a Monday morning news conference, and Guthrie is “of great sound mind” and “sharp as a tack.” But she also has limited mobility and “couldn’t walk 50 yards,” the sheriff said, leading investigators to believe she was taken from the house.
“This isn’t somebody who wandered off,” Nanos said.
“We also have some things at that scene that indicate to us that she was removed from that scene against her will. I can’t go into all those details,” Nanos said, saying it’s to protect the integrity of the case.
He also declined to give information about whether it appears Guthrie was hurt during the incident.
Investigators are analyzing DNA evidence found at the scene, the sheriff told Read more