Investigators have found DNA on a glove that appears to match one a suspect was wearing in doorbell camera footage taken the night Nancy Guthrie disappeared.
The FBI said on Sunday that investigators recovered the glove from a field near the side of the road about two miles from Guthrie’s home in Tucson, Arizona.
The agency said it has received preliminary DNA test results on the glove and is still waiting for “quality control and official confirmation” before entering an “unknown male profile” into its database.
Guthrie, the 84-year-old mother of US TV news anchor Savannah Guthrie, has been missing for two weeks. Authorities believe she was taken against her will.
The FBI said on Sunday that it had collected about 16 gloves from various locations near Nancy Guthrie’s home, though most turned out to have been discarded by people searching for her.
“The one with the DNA profile recovered is different and appears to match the gloves of the subject in the surveillance video,” the FBI said.
Earlier this week, investigators released footagefrom a doorbell camera at Guthrie’s front door that shows a masked man wearing gloves and a backpack.
In the video, the suspect walks toward the camera and tries to cover it with his gloved hand before grabbing some brush from the front yard to block the camera’s view.
After conducting a forensic analysis of the video, the FBI announced earlier this week that it believed the man was between 5ft 9in and 5ft 10in (175-177cm) tall with an average build.
The FBI also highlighted the backpack the suspect was wearing in the video, identifying it as a 25-litre Ozark Trail Hiker Pack.
Authorities believe the suspect in the video kidnapped Guthrie in the early hours of the morning of 1 February.
The county sheriff’s department has said the suspect description “remains a key focus”, but added that “investigators are not ruling out any individuals or possibilities”.
Later on Sunday, Savannah Guthrie issued a new direct appeal for her mother’s safe return.
“It’s been two weeks since our mom was taken,” she said in a video posted on Instagram, adding, “We still have hope, and we still believe”.
“And I wanted to say to whoever has her or knows where she is, that it’s never too late, and you’re not lost or alone.”
Speaking slowly and haltingly, she adds: “It is never too late to do the right thing.”
Guthrie was last seen on 31 January, when a family member dropped her off at her home following a get-together at her daughter Annie’s house.
Members of her church noticed her absence the following day and notified her family.
In the two weeks since Guthrie’s disappearance, the FBI and Pima County Sheriff’s Office have conducted a massive search operation involving helicopters, sniffer dogs and hundreds of officers while taking in thousands of call-in tips.
Officials have warned that she may be in dire health without her medication. Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos has said Guthrie was “not in good physical health” but had no reported cognitive issues.
On Friday, authorities executed a search warrant at a residence two miles from Guthrie’s home but made no arrests.
Local officials have also said investigators found DNA at Guthrie’s address that did not belong to her or anyone close to her.
The FBI has increased the reward for information about Guthrie’s disappearance from $50,000 (£36,700) to $100,000.
By BBC News
Email your news TIPS to Editor@Kahawatungu.com — this is our only official communication channel
