Pima County sheriff’s agency posts ‘Nancy has been located’ — and ripped for misleading message

The under-fire sheriff’s department leading the investigation into Nancy Guthrie’s kidnapping is facing fresh flak after sharing a heart-stopping post that left many thinking the 84-year-old mom had been found.

The Pima County Sheriff’s Department’s social media team shared a post late Thursday that said simply, “Update: Nancy has been located.”

The post actually referred to Nancy Radakovich, an 82-year-old who bears a striking resemblance to “Today” show host Savannah Guthrie’s still-missing mom.

The Pima County Sheriff’s Department was criticized for the misleading “Update: Nancy has been located” post.

But that was not immediately obvious because it did not include her last name, and the image was not immediately clear as it had a large “LOCATED” stamped across her picture.

“I LITERALLY THOUGHT THIS WAS NANCY GUTHRIE. THE WAY MY HEART JUST DROPPED!” one commentator said of the alarm it sparked.

“Pima County is a joke. Obviously it is great this lady was located but you guys have to be absolutely brain dead to not know people would think this was Nancy Guthrie, they even look alike,” another said.

“No wonder her kidnapper got away with it.”

Others said it was “clickbait” not to include Nancy’s surname, to make clear it was not the country’s most-publicized missing person’s case.

“I swear to God this Twitter account is run by Mr. Magoo,” added a second X user.

Another user pointed out that in previous missing person posts, Pima County had used the person’s surname in the text.

“Of all the posts you’ve made about a missing person being located (Mr/Mrs last name, or first name/last name ), you chose THIS ONE to use the first name only??” the X user wrote.

The department has come under criticism since Sheriff Chris Nanos ordered the crime scene to be released just days after Guthrie went missing 75 days ago on Jan. 31.

On Thursday, the department posted its first statement on the case in weeks following reports that some DNA evidence had been sent to an FBI lab for advanced analysis.

“I am told the evidence includes hairs found in Guthrie’s home,” NewsNation’s Brian Entin posted.

Savannah Guthrie’s mother, Nancy Guthrie, is still missing. Nathan Congleton/NBC via Getty Images

This followed criticisms of the department’s decision to send DNA to a private lab in Florida rather than use the FBI’s facilities.

“PCSD has worked with the FBI since the beginning of the Guthrie investigation. This is not new information,” the department said in a post on X.

“The private lab we utilize in Florida continues to share information with the FBI lab & other partner labs across the country. DNA analysis remains ongoing,” the statement concluded.

Before that update, the PCSD hadn’t shared any official statements on the case since March 24.

That previous post warned the public not to fall victim to “fundraising scams” falsely claiming to be raising money for Guthrie’s family.

It clarified that there were no legitimate campaigns linked to Guthrie.

Earlier in April, embattled Sheriff Nanos sat down for an interview in which he defended his handling of the investigation.