Derrick Callella, a 42-year-old California man, has been sentenced to probation after admitting that he sent fake ransom-related messages to the family of Nancy Guthrie, the 84-year-old mother of Today co-host Savannah Guthrie. Callella pleaded guilty in July to two counts of harassment using a telecommunications device after contacting the family in February and asking about a bitcoin payment. Prosecutors said he knew an earlier ransom demand had been made and wanted information about the investigation.
Callella was sentenced on August 31 to two five-year probation terms, which will run concurrently. The charges carried a potential maximum of two years in prison and a $250,000 fine per count, but the court imposed probation instead. Investigators were able to trace the communications to Callella despite his use of a spoofed phone number. Authorities have emphasized that his messages were separate from the original ransom communications connected to Guthrie’s disappearance.
Nancy Guthrie disappeared from her Tucson-area home after she was last seen on the evening of January 31. Investigators found her blood near the home and released surveillance footage showing an armed, masked individual appearing to tamper with a camera at the residence. The FBI and Pima County Sheriff’s Department continue to investigate the disappearance as a possible kidnapping-for-ransom case.
The case remains unresolved, and Callella’s conviction did not identify who may have taken Nancy Guthrie or establish what happened to her. Authorities have previously received multiple ransom-related communications, some of which were determined to be illegitimate, while others remained under investigation. No suspect has been publicly identified in Guthrie’s disappearance.
Now, nearly eight months after Guthrie vanished, investigators are examining a new possible ransom note. The Pima County Sheriff’s Department and the FBI task force said they are working to determine whether the latest note is credible and are also reviewing related social-media comments. Nancy Guthrie’s whereabouts remain unknown, and the investigation is still active.
