41-minute timeline in Nancy Guthrie case raises red flags from ex-homicide detective

08 Feb 2026 By foxnews

A former homicide detective is raising questions about the amount of time investigators believe suspects spent inside the home of missing Arizona woman Nancy Guthrie.

Investigators are examining a roughly 41-minute window between when the home's doorbell camera disconnected and when Guthrie's pacemaker app later stopped communicating with her phone.

The Pima County Sheriff's Department released a timeline showing the doorbell camera disconnected at 1:47 a.m., with motion detected at 2:12 a.m., and the pacemaker disconnected at 2:28 a.m.

Officials clarified that the surveillance system only detected motion and did not record video, leaving open the possibility that an animal outside the home triggered the software.

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However, former D.C. homicide detective Ted Williams argued the length of time is what raises red flags.

"If you are a crook, and you want to burglarize a place, you're [going to] get in there and get the hell out," Williams said on "Saturday in America."

"They stayed in 41 minutes."

Guthrie, 84, is the mother of NBC News' "Today" show host Savannah Guthrie and has been missing from her home in Tucson since Jan. 31. Law enforcement has not named any suspects or motive in the case but confirmed a crime occurred.

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Williams said spending 41 minutes inside a home is uncharacteristic of a burglary and may suggest the suspects were familiar with the home and its security system.

"That leads me to believe that they were well aware of the cameras and those cameras were inoperable in that home," he added.

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"I think that the individuals involved in Nancy going missing definitely knew that they didn't have to worry about law enforcement immediately rushing there."

In a statement, the FBI and Pima County Sheriff's Department said they are reviewing messages related to Nancy Guthrie's disappearance. Investigators said multiple alleged ransom notes have surfaced, including one sent to local news outlets and TMZ earlier this week.

In a video posted Wednesday night, the Guthrie family urged anyone with information about their mother's disappearance to come forward, addressing reports of ransom notes and saying they are "ready to talk."