Dad of Abducted Teen Reveals if There’s ‘Value’ to ‘Conspiracy Theories’ About Savannah Guthrie’s Sister & Brother-in-Law
Everyone’s got opinions about the Nancy Guthrie investigation. Some opinions, however, should be taken with a grain of salt and some are worth listening to. The latter group comes from experts and in some cases, people who have been through the horrible experience of seeing a loved one disappear.
One of those people is Ed Smart, the father of Elizabeth Smart, who was abducted at age 14 and held for nine months before being rescued in 2003. At the time her disappearance was one of the biggest stories of the year, and is still considered one of the most high-profile kidnappings to ever happen in the United States.
Related: Who are Savannah Guthrie’s siblings?
And what does Smart have to say? Smart told NewsNation people need to be careful with their speculation. “I think that it’s really important to, one, not go into conspiracy theories. I don’t think there’s much value in that. Of course, the Guthries have been looked at,” he said.
“[The family has] supposedly been cleared. So that should no longer really be out there in the public, regardless of whether people are searching around the house or not.”
His comments feel especially pointed considering that throughout the Nancy Guthrie investigation, there has been a lot of focus on Savannah Guthrie’s sister, Annie, and her husband, Tommaso Cioni. The two were the last to see Nancy Guthrie alive. However, police have never considered them suspects, with Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos saying, “To be clear … the Guthrie family — to include all siblings and spouses — has been cleared as possible suspects.” He added, “The family has been nothing but cooperative and gracious and are victims in this case.”
“I think it’s important to keep information coming. Savannah and the family—more information about their mother,” Smart added. “That was one thing that our family continually tried to do was to keep new information coming out. We don’t know what law enforcement has, whether they have any DNA that’s of any value or not. Sometimes law enforcement really does not disclose what they have and that can be problematic.”
He also said, “I think keeping Nancy’s face out there, more information about Nancy, is really key.”
Elizabeth Smart’s case was solved after someone recognized the teen when she was out walking with the man who kidnapped her, and alerted authorities.
Former FBI agent Jason Pack recently told Page Six, “Every day that passes the pressure builds. Keeping a secret like this is exhausting. … and that gets harder with every morning that Savannah Guthrie sits behind that anchor desk.” According to Pack, Savannah’s return to Today is crucial for keeping the story alive.
“Most criminals in cases like this count on the media moving on,” he said. “They count on the family fading from public view. They count on people forgetting. This case is different. Savannah has a national platform and she shows up on it every single day. Every time a viewer sees her face, they think about her mother.”
And that could lead to a resolution like that of Elizabeth Smart. “At some point, someone is going to have the courage to make that call,” he said. “One phone call from someone who decides the reward money matters more than their silence is all it takes to bring law enforcement directly to their front door.”
