Hired Help? Mystery Perp? Nancy Guthrie Search Blows Wide Open | Nancy Guthrie Missing Day 14

Drop Dead Serious With Ashleigh Banfield

True Crime

4.6 • 1.1K Ratings

🗓️ 15 February 2026

⏱️ 65 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

As speculation grows about the mystery perp caught on Google Nest cameras, unidentified DNA inside Nancy’s home, and the decision to send key evidence to a Florida lab instead of Quantico, the tone of this investigation has definitely shifted on Day 14 in the search for the 84-year-old mother of Today Show Host Savannah Guthrie, Nancy Guthrie. In this episode of Drop Dead Serious, Ashleigh Banfield breaks down what stands out after two weeks, the masked mystery perp caught on video, questions surrounding tainted evidence and early scene access, and whether tension between federal and local authorities is typical in cases like this. Plus, former FBI Special Agent Maureen O’Connell joins the podcast to analyze the escalation, the meaning behind the aggressive search tactics, and what this stage of the investigation could signal in the ongoing search for Nancy Guthrie. If you have any information about the disappearance of Nancy Guthrie, you’re urged to contact the FBI at 1-800-CALL-FBI

Transcript

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0:00.0	Hey everyone, I'm Ashley Bannfield and this is Drop Dead Serious. It is Saturday, February 14th.
0:06.0	It's Valentine's Day. It is also two weeks since anyone last saw Nancy Guthrie alive after she was
0:13.3	dropped off following a dinner with her family members. And after 14 days, you can imagine that people are upset, they are frustrated,
0:22.7	they have followed every moment. I'm sure you have been following every moment of this case.
0:27.8	It is perplexing. It is confounding. How do you just steal an 84-year-old grandmother and get away
0:33.5	with it? That's how most people feel, and I'm sure that members of law enforcement feel the
0:38.9	same way. Guaranteed they know more than we do, however. On this episode tonight, I've got somebody
0:44.8	just fantastic. I mean, God, Marie O'Connell has always amazed me, right? She looks like she's this
0:51.8	pretty delicate little flower, and she's just, she's one tough lady.
0:58.1	She spent 25 years in the FBI as a special agent, and she knows her shit.
1:04.2	I had this incredibly detailed conversation with her about specifics, about facts in this case and specifics. And she weighs in on stuff.
1:12.8	She hasn't said elsewhere. And other people haven't said either. Really interesting stuff.
1:18.4	Also, did you hear that there is now a signal sniffer that's entered the story?
1:23.8	Interesting because Matt Murphy and I talked several days ago about figuring out some way to get
1:28.6	Nancy Guthrie's phone to sort of fly over houses within 30 feet because it might reconnect to her
1:35.2	pacemaker. Pacemakers don't die. They don't go away. Even if she's alive or dead, the pacemaker's still
1:40.4	going. The signal stiffer apparently is supposed to do that job. I'm going to go into
1:46.0	detail about the signal sniffer and one thing that I don't understand about the method that they're
1:50.7	using. So it's a bit weird, but I will get to that in a second. Also, big question for you, if you
1:57.5	were up with me until 4 o'clock in the morning last night, thank you.
2:07.6	I appreciate the company. But also, I kept thinking to myself as vehicle after vehicle kept entering the perimeter, dozens of federal and local law enforcement vehicles, SWAT vehicles,
2:15.2	forensic vehicles, FBI vehicles, marked, unmarked, sheriff's deputy, all the rest.
	...

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