L.A. County man admits he sent Nancy Guthrie's family fake ransom notes
Source: LA Times
A Hawthorne man on Thursday pleaded guilty to federal charges of sending a fake ransom note to the family of “Today” show co-host Savannah Guthrie, whose mother, Nancy, was abducted in a mystery that captured national attention.
Derrick Callella entered the plea in Arizona to charges of transmitting a demand for ransom in interstate commerce and utilizing a telecommunications device with intent to abuse, threaten or harass a person. He faces up to 10 years probation when he is sentenced Sept. 10.
Nancy Guthrie, 84, disappeared from her Tucson suburb home Feb. 1. She was last seen the previous night after she was dropped off around 9:45 p.m.
With Guthrie missing, the FBI extracted and released doorbell camera images of an armed and masked man outside her home on the morning of her disappearance. The FBI has labeled that unknown man as a suspect in the abduction.
A few days after Nancy Guthrie vanished, Callella, 42, according to prosecutors, used a voice over internet protocol text and call application to surreptitiously reach out to the Guthrie family, but authorities were able to link the phone number to his email address and later his residence, according to the criminal complaint.
Read more: https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2026-07-02/guthrie-fake-ransom-notes-guilty-plea
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