Ed Smart, the father of Elizabeth Smart, who was a victim of kidnapping, has spoken out about the disappearance of Nancy Guthrie.
On Friday, April 24, Ed appeared on NewsNation’s Jesse Weber Live and addressed the ongoing search for the mother of Savannah Guthrie, a well-known host on Today. At 70 years old, he emphasized the importance of avoiding conspiracy theories.
“I think it’s really important to, one, not go into conspiracy theories. I don’t think there’s much value in that,” he said. “Of course, the Guthries have been looked at.”
“They’ve supposedly been cleared,” he continued. “So that should no longer really be out there in the public, regardless of whether people are searching around the house or not.”
As previously reported by OK!, the Arizona home of Nancy’s eldest daughter, Annie Guthrie, was searched in the days after the 84-year-old vanished on February 1. Her car was also taken into custody.
Online sleuths quickly speculated that Annie and her husband, Tommaso Cioni, were involved in Nancy’s alleged abduction—especially after reporter Ashleigh Banfield claimed a law enforcement source told her Tommaso was the “prime suspect.”
‘Victims Plain and Simple’
However, the Pima County Sheriff’s Department released a statement early in the investigation announcing they were not looking at Savannah, her siblings, or any of their spouses.
“The family has been nothing but cooperative and gracious and are victims in this case,” Sheriff Chris Nanos wrote in an X post on February 16.
“To suggest otherwise is not only wrong, it is cruel. The Guthrie family are victims plain and simple,” he said. “I’m begging you the media to honor your profession and report with some sense of compassion and professionalism.”
Savannah Guthrie Slammed ‘Cruel Speculation’ About Her Family
Savannah, 54, addressed the accusations during a two-part pre-taped interview with Hoda Kotb on Today that aired on March 26 and 27.
“When you talk about the cruel speculation, the whispers, the innuendo that it was somebody in your family, how did you weather that?” Hoda asked.
“It’s unbearable,” the NBC anchor replied. “And it piles pain upon pain. There are no words, there are no words. I don’t understand and I will never understand.”
When Was Nancy Guthrie Last Seen?
Nancy was last seen by Annie and Tommaso on the evening of January 31. Investigators believe she is the victim of a targeted kidnapping.
A trail of her blood was notably found on the front porch of her Tucson, Ariz., home.
While investigators have released doorbell footage of a masked suspect and a description of that individual, no suspects have been named.
