Nancy Guthrie Case: Sheriff Shrugs Off Mistakes as He Begs for Captor to 'Give Her Up'

Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos is standing by his decisions — even as criticism continues to grow.

Nearly two months after Nancy Guthrie vanished, the Pima County sheriff is defending how his team has handled the investigation, telling News 4 Tucson that he is unapologetic about the way the case has been managed.

"Look, I have no regrets about my team and their efforts. I don’t regret we let the crime scene go too soon or any of that,” Nanos said.

He then made a direct plea to Guthrie’s captor, adding, "Just give her up. Let her go. Take her to a clinic, a hospital. Drop her off. Just let her go."

Still, not everyone agrees with that stance.

A retired New York City cop is now calling out the sheriff, blaming him for mishandling the case.

“I’ve been an outspoken critic of his from the very first few press conferences,” retired NYPD Lieutenant Michael Gould told the New York Post. “He should have assigned a public information officer to go out in front of the press to confirm or deny certain things.”

Gould didn’t stop there, as he pointed to several issues he believes have hurt the investigation, including the decision to suspend K-9 searches.

“My biggest trigger was when he started to blame the general public and the media,” he said. “The straw that broke the camel’s back for me was when he said the cadaver dogs are on hold."

He added that the decision to do so “either implies she’s alive or they’re not looking for her anymore. Why wouldn’t you answer the question?”

The ex-police officer also criticized Nanos for acting as the main spokesperson, arguing that the sheriff’s communication style has only added confusion.

“It’s almost like he’s intentionally trying to cloud the issues because you never get a straight answer,” the former cop added. “He’s been ambiguous from day one. The community doesn’t know if there’s a serial killer running around.”

“He’s made this whole case about himself,” Gould said. “It could be only one of these three things: ego, incompetence, or politics, because he’s running for office.”

Savannah Guthrie’s mother was last seen on January 31 and was reported missing the next day, February 1, from her home in Catalina Foothills, Ariz. Authorities believe she may have been targeted.

About two weeks ago, Chris also addressed public safety concerns in a separate statement, saying, "It would be silly to tell people, 'Yeah, don't worry about it, you're not his target.'"

That comment quickly drew criticism from experts, including former FBI agent Jason Pack.

"From my experience as a crisis communications practitioner, where it gets complicated is when, in that same interview, he suggests the suspect could strike again," Jason told Page Six. "Once you put that out there, every person watching wants to know who’s at risk and what they ought to do about it."

He continued, "If you can’t answer those questions, you probably shouldn’t lead with that statement. A warning without context doesn’t necessarily protect people. It worries them. And it sits a little uneasily alongside the 'targeted attack' framing he’s also offered. Those two ideas need to fit together before they go out the door. I just think a little more discipline at the podium, coordinated closely with FBI leadership, would serve everyone better as this moves forward."