Detained Tucson man says online sleuths got it wrong in Nancy Guthrie abduction case
Luke Daley, questioned during a SWAT search near the missing 84-year-old’s home, insists he has “nothing to do with this” as investigators keep pushing for tips.
A month after Nancy Guthrie vanished from her Tucson-area home, the man briefly detained in a high-profile SWAT search says he became a target because strangers on the internet decided he looked like the masked figure seen near her door.
Nancy Guthrie, 84, the mother of TODAY co-host Savannah Guthrie, was reported missing on February 1 after relatives couldn’t reach her. Authorities say evidence indicates she was taken against her will, and the case has since drawn national attention and an outpouring of tips.
On February 13, investigators executed search warrants at a home roughly two miles from Guthrie’s residence and detained Luke Daley, 37, and his 77-year-old mother for several hours. Neither was arrested or charged. Daley has now spoken publicly, telling True Crime Arizona that he is not the person captured on doorbell footage and has no connection to the disappearance, according to reporting by PEOPLE.
Daley said he believes online speculation helped steer attention toward him after social media users circulated images of the masked suspect and compared them to his appearance. “It’s not me,” he said in the interview, adding that he wants Guthrie found safe.
Investigators have released details about the suspect seen in security video and are asking the public to focus on evidence, not internet theories. The FBI increased its reward to $100,000 in mid-February and shared additional visuals tied to the suspect’s appearance, including a backpack visible in the footage, as reported by Reuters.
The FBI’s Phoenix Field Office continues to solicit tips and has published an official poster and contact information for anyone who may know where Guthrie is or who may be responsible, including a phone line and online tip portal listed in the bureau’s public notice: FBI Phoenix Field Office.
As the search stretches on, the Guthrie family has kept a steady public presence, pleading for Nancy’s safe return and thanking the Tucson community for support. For investigators, Daley’s message is a reminder of a growing challenge in major cases: viral “lookalike” claims can spread fast, but they do not replace verifiable leads.
