Savannah Guthrie’s “Today” show co-hosts somberly shared an update on her mom Nancy Guthrie’s ongoing disappearance Thursday as NYPD surrounded the studio.
Craig Melvin and Sheinelle Jones filled viewers in on the tearful plea Savannah and her siblings — Annie Guthrie and Camron Guthrie — directed to their mother’s potential captors Wednesday night.
“We begin this morning with the latest on the search for Savannah’s beloved mother, Nancy,” Jones, who has been filling in for Savannah during the 54-year-old’s absence, said.
Melvin, 46, pointed out that “most days, of course, Savannah greets you right here from this desk.”
However, he noted, “This morning, our dear friend has a very different message.”
Jones, 47, explained that Savannah and her brother and sister shared “direct messages to their mom and whoever may have abducted” the 84-year-old via Instagram.
“We want to play that video for you right now, in its entirety,” Melvin said before airing the emotional footage.
Behind Melvin and Jones, members of New York City’s police force could be seen monitoring NBC’s Studio 1A.
The Sun reported Wednesday that security presence at the Manhattan building has been ramped up out of an “abundance of caution” as the desperate search for Nancy, who vanished from her Arizona home over the weekend, continues.
“Things are tense at the studio, and as a result, NBC has stepped up,” a source told the outlet. “NBC has partnered with the NYPD to make sure their staff remains safe.”
The previous day, Jones admitted to being “rattled” and having “trouble sleeping” while covering her friend and colleague’s family crisis.
“We’re all shaken,” she said on Tuesday. “We all recognize that we have a job to do. But as you guys know, we’re family around here, and it’s not just something that we say.”
Jenna Bush Hager chimed in, “[Nancy] is a woman who is loved deeply by everyone here at ‘Today.’”
Savannah, notably, pulled out of hosting the Winter Olympics in Italy on Friday, as did Melvin, who will remain in the studio with Jones.
He and his colleagues, including former “Today” co-anchor Hoda Kotb, reposted Savannah’s video via social media and begged their followers to “keep praying.”
Savannah’s mother suffers from various health woes, from high blood pressure to cardiac issues, and she is in urgent need of medication.
She was last seen at her residence Saturday evening when son-in-law Tommaso Cioni dropped her off after a family dinner.
Nancy did not show up to church the following morning, with her home showing signs of forced entry and an apparent blood trail.
It is believed Nancy was “taken from the home against her will, possibly in the middle of the night,” according to Pima County Sheriff’s Department, and multiple purported ransom notes have been sent to local news stations.
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