New Guthrie ransom note

True crime · Heat 1.0 / 10 · 2 shows · 57m airtime

On September 28, 2026, the Pima County Sheriff's Department announced investigators were recently made aware of a new possible ransom note in the disappearance of Nancy Guthrie, last seen January 31 and reported missing February 1. The note was a text demanding Bitcoin that a retired FBI agent tied to an April scam, and the FBI is investigating the extortion as likely run from outside the country. The same Bitcoin address appears in an April extortion email and one sent to Lauren Serpa. The discussion now centers on whether the note is genuine or a hoax, and on the limits of DNA analysis, since samples with three or more profiles cannot currently be separated scientifically.

How 2 podcasts covered it

1. Crime Stories with Nancy Grace, 2026-09-30 (0:04 to 2:09)
   Reports the newly disclosed ransom note
   First coverage of the newly disclosed possible ransom note: the Pima County Sheriff's Department says investigators were recently made aware of it and are weighing social media comments about its credibility, with the two July 31 notes recapped as background.
   New angle: A new possible ransom note surfaced in the Guthrie case, and investigators are vetting social media comments about its credibility.
2. Hidden Killers With Tony Brueski, 2026-10-02 (1:09 to 28:22)
   Adds the FBI extortion investigation
   Coffindaffer goes on the record about her own April extortion email: the FBI is investigating it as an extortion likely run from overseas, and the Bitcoin addresses in her messages did not match those sent to TMZ.
   New angle: The FBI is investigating the extortion as likely run from outside the country.
3. Hidden Killers With Tony Brueski, 2026-10-02 (1:58 to 3:15)
   Adds the Bitcoin text and the April scam
   Adds the specifics of the September 28 note the sheriff's department was vetting: a text claiming Guthrie is alive in Mexico, a Bitcoin demand, and a retired FBI agent saying it matches a scam she was targeted by in April. Then recaps the confirmed evidence.
   New angle: The September 28 note was a text demanding Bitcoin that a retired FBI agent tied to an April scam.
4. Hidden Killers With Tony Brueski, 2026-10-10 (16:51 to 36:00)
   Reports Coffindaffer's own extortion email
   Coffindaffer goes on the record about her own April extortion email: a personal address, a middle name she has not used in 30 years, an AI image of an injured Nancy Guthrie, and a Bitcoin address that matched the one sent to Lauren Serpa. She says she reported it to the FBI and got no feedback beyond the initial conversations.
   New angle: Coffindaffer's April extortion email carried the same Bitcoin address as the one sent to Lauren Serpa.
5. Hidden Killers With Tony Brueski, 2026-10-10 (36:00 to 43:40)
   Explains the DNA holdup on mixed samples
   Coffindaffer explains the DNA holdup: a genetic genealogist told her samples with three or more profiles cannot currently be separated, and she says five labs have touched the samples. She also presses the department to release enhanced surveillance images.
   New angle: Samples with three or more DNA profiles cannot currently be separated scientifically.