An unofficial suspect sketch is drawing backlash as investigators continue searching for Nancy Guthrie, who disappeared Jan. 31. The last sighting of the 84-year-old Tucson woman, who wears a pacemaker and requires medication, occurred after she had dinner at her daughter Annie Guthrie’s home.
She returned safely to her residence that night but failed to meet a friend the following day. The missed meeting prompted a wellness check, and authorities launched a kidnapping investigation. In recent days, questions have surfaced online about aspects of the case, including the authenticity of ransom notes that have been circulated publicly.
After the FBI released surveillance images of a person wearing a ski mask on Nancy Guthrie’s property, veteran forensic artist Lois Gibson posted an unofficial pencil rendering attempting to fill in the obscured facial features.
“I GUESSED at the parts of face covered with a ski mask on this Nancy Guthrie kidnapping suspect,” Gibson wrote on Facebook.
“I used the surveillance photos shown.”
Gibson, who said she has worked professionally for more than four decades, acknowledged uncertainty in the drawing.
“Only thing somewhat sure are eyes and part of lips, mustache. I’ll take the hit if I’m drastically wrong,” she wrote.
The sketch quickly drew mixed reactions online.
“I will NOT be sharing this, as this just confuses everyone, and will divert LE into different directions, based on a sketch that the author herself says she GUESSED at!” one user wrote on X.
Others defended Gibson’s effort and cited her experience.
“Lois is a genius. And a spot on a sketch artist. Her work speaks for itself,” one user wrote.
“Thank you, Ms. Gibson, for sharing your expertise and putting in so much effort on this difficult case. Your decades of experience give hope that law enforcement and the public can get closer to finding Nancy Guthrie,” another wrote.
The suspect’s gender has also sparked debate.
Although the FBI has indicated the person appears to be a man, some social media users questioned that assessment.
“Call me crazy, but I feel like it’s possibly a woman,” one user wrote.
“No, I’ve been saying the same thing since it came out. I said they could’ve worn bulky clothes to throw off the gender. Regardless of what gender they end up being, they have the most feminine eyes and eyebrows ever,” another wrote.
Law enforcement sources say investigators are exploring whether the disappearance of Nancy Guthrie may have resulted from a burglary that went awry, rather than a planned abduction, according to multiple local media reports citing inside sources.
CBS 5 true crime correspondent Briana Whitney also said in her weekend report that Nancy “could be alive,” two weeks after she went missing from her Tucson, Arizona home. Whitney stated that is the “widespread belief” among investigators in her report, which she said is based on an “inside source.”
“We can now report investigators now believe this was a burglary gone wrong,” Whitney said in a video posted on X. “We’ve interviewed multiple experts since this began who also said based on the evidence, the surveillance video, and other aspects of this case, that they also believed this was not an intended kidnapping.”
Whitney, who works for the CBS affiliate in Phoenix, reported that DNA evidence from the Range Rover, which investigators picked up about two miles away from Nancy Guthrie’s house on Friday, is currently being tested.
“And last but probably most important, the widespread belief by investigators tonight is that Nancy Guthrie could be alive,” Whitney added.