A person of interest who was detained February 10 in connection with the disappearance of 84-year-old Nancy Guthrie, the mother of NBC “Today” show co-host Savannah Guthrie, has been released after questioning by authorities.
The individual was stopped February 10 in Rio Rico, south of Tucson, hours after the FBI released surveillance footage showing a masked, armed person outside Guthrie’s home. Authorities have not confirmed whether the person detained was the individual seen in the surveillance footage.
The development marks the first significant law enforcement action since Guthrie vanished from her Arizona home on February 1, sparking a high-profile search that has drawn national attention.
Carlos Palazuelos told Fox News that he was pulled over and detained during the traffic stop.
“I was being detained. Detained, OK. I was detained the whole time,” he said.
Palazuelos, who works as a delivery driver in Tucson, said investigators questioned him about his whereabouts and employment.
When a reporter asked if he might have delivered a package to Nancy Guthrie’s house, he responded, per Fox News, “I don’t know. It might have been a possibility. I don’t know.”
Authorities showed a family member photos of the masked individual captured on surveillance footage at Guthrie’s home, Palazuelos said.
“That’s it. That’s all I know,” Palazuelos said.
The Pima County Sheriff’s Department has not publicly confirmed the identity of the person detained or whether Palazuelos was the individual stopped during the traffic investigation.
Nancy Guthrie, described by police as mentally sound but with limited mobility, requires medications, and authorities have expressed concern about her health without them. Her disappearance prompted her daughter, Savannah, and two siblings to release video statements pleading for their mother’s return and indicating willingness to pay a ransom.
The investigation remains ongoing.