Tag: kidnappings

Human Remains Found Near Guthrie Home Create New Mystery, Fail to Solve Current One

A new find near the Arizona home of Nancy Guthrie did nothing to clarify the mystery of her disappearance, but instead added a new one.

Human remains were found about five miles from the Tucson home from which Guthrie disappeared on Feb. 1, according to the New York Post.

A bone was discovered by a livestreamer who was conducting a search of the area.

Tucson police acted quickly to tamp down any speculation the bone could belong to the 84-year-old mother of “Today” host Savannah Guthrie.

“This will be a prehistoric anthropological investigation,” Tucson Police Department said, according to KVOA-TV.

Police said the bone was at least 50 years old, and there is no criminal investigation forthcoming.

The University of Arizona’s Anthropology Department is assisting the Pima County Office of the Medical Examiner in ascertaining details about the bone.

The Post noted that Native American artifacts have been found in the area where the bone was found.

This week, FBI Director Kash Patel criticized the way the Pima County Sheriff’s Office conducted the early stages of the investigation into Guthrie’s disappearance

“For four days we were kept out of the investigation,” Patel said on Sean Hannity’s podcast, according to ABC News.

“The first 48 hours of anyone’s disappearance are the most critical,” he said.

Patel criticized Pima County Chris Nanos for sending DNA samples to a private lab instead of the FBI lab in Quantico, Virginia.

“We have Quantico, best lab in the world,” Patel said.

The Pima County Sheriff’s Office pushed back on both criticisms.

“Sheriff Nanos responded to the scene the night of the incident, providing immediate local leadership and oversight. A member of the FBI Task Force was also notified and present at that scene working alongside our personnel. The FBI was promptly notified by both our department and the Guthrie family. While the FBI Director was not on scene, coordination with the Bureau began without delay,” it said in a statement.

Decisions about processing evidence “were made on scene based on operational needs,” the statement said.

“The laboratory utilized by the Pima County Sheriff’s Department and the FBI Laboratory in Quantico have worked in close partnership from the outset and continue to collaborate in the analysis of evidence,” the statement said.

“We remain committed to a thorough, coordinated, and fact-based investigation and will continue working closely with our federal partners as the process moves forward,” the statement said.

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DNA test uncovers kidnapping, mob, police corruption

A Henderson man named Paul Fronczak had no idea that his entire life would be turned upside down when he bought a home DNA test kit. The results of that test took away his name, his family, and everything he knew about his life to that point.

It also opened up a multi-layered rabbit hole involving an infamous kidnapping, police corruption, the mob, and dark secrets buried for six decades.

8 News Now chief investigator George Knapp has followed this very twisted tale for decades and pushed to get answers to mysteries long thought unsolvable.

Paul Fronczak’s quest started with a single objective: find a kidnapped baby

This then exploded into a Byzantine maze of twists and subplots, too improbable even for a true crime miniseries. In the 14 years since he first contacted us for help, he’s dug up solid answers, but each answer led to more head-spinning questions. He still uses the name Paul Fronczak, but after years of searching, he sometimes feels as if he’s been living someone else’s life.

The initial mystery started at a Chicago hospital in 1964.  One day after the birth of Paul Fronczak, a woman dressed as a nurse kidnapped the baby and vanished. Police, the public, and the FBI conducted a massive manhunt. The story made international headlines, but the baby was gone.

Nearly two years later, an infant found abandoned on a sidewalk in New Jersey was presented by law enforcement to the brokenhearted Fronczak parents, who took one look and said that’s their missing boy.

The child grew up in a loving home but had nagging questions about why he looked so different from the rest of the Fronczak family.  

Fast forward to 2012, the adopted Paul Fronczak was living in Henderson and, almost as a lark, took a DNA test along with his parents. The test showed he was not the Fronczaks’ son and was not the kidnapped baby.

So who was he, and what happened to his namesake? That was the start of his quest, despite the official investigation from the FBI ending decades ago.

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Rare Survivors of Pacific Boat Strikes Allege U.S. Forces Kidnapped and Tortured Them

The extraordinary story you’re about to read, by Camila Lourdes Galarza, is a dark look into what it’s like to live and die on the other side of U.S. headlines. As we expand deeper into reporting on South and Central America, particularly with the hiring of our Latin America bureau chief José Luis Granados Ceja, this is the kind of journalism we hope to be bringing you more of. (Granados Ceja just returned from a reporting trip to Cuba; watch him discuss the situation there on Breaking Points.)

The last time Roxanna Mero heard from her husband Carlos was January 19. Calling from sea on an emergency line, he said an “American aircraft, two drones, and a blue patrol ship” had been circling La Fiorella, the Ecuadorian fishing boat he captained. The presence of an airplane worried him, given that Trump’s extrajudicial airstrikes across the Pacific and Caribbean have killed more than 170 people in 6 months, but a local coast guard had already inspected the vessel, found nothing and cleared them to continue.

The next day, the boat went up in smoke. The eight fishermen aboard have not been seen since.

Three independent accounts from relatives of the missing crew assert that eyewitnesses, on a nearby raft at the time of the incident, saw La Fiorella engulfed in flames. “They’ve been threatened not to speak to the press. They’re scared for their lives,” said Angelica Lourdes Mero, whose son and spouse are among the disappeared men.

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Madeleine McCann suspect Christian Brueckner should face trial in Britain ‘for her abduction and murder’, Met Police say

Detectives from the Metropolitan Police are reportedly pushing for Christian Brueckner to stand trial in Britain for the abduction and murder of Madeleine McCann. 

Brueckner, 48, was named as the prime suspect in the toddler’s disappearance by German police while serving a sentence for the rape of a pensioner. 

However charges were never brought – and he was released last year. 

Now, one of Scotland Yard’s most senior officers is leading a push to charge Brueckner by the end of the year.

The Met wants to see him stand trial at the Old Bailey and is confident it can present a strong enough case to see the Crown Prosecution Service bring charges.

But the German constitution does not allow the extradition of its citizens to countries not in the European Union – meaning the suspect’s transfer to the United Kingdom could cause a diplomatic row. 

Brueckner was living just a mile away from the Praia da Luz hotel where Madeleine had been staying with her family at the time of her disappearance in 2007.  

If Berlin rejects any extradition request, British officers are understood to be committed to ensuring that he faces charges in either Germany or Portugal. 

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Man With Immigration Detainer Hold Charged in Alleged Kidnapping of 12-Year-Old Baltimore Girl

A 12-year-old girl was abducted in Cockeysville, which is in the Baltimore area of Maryland. The alleged kidnapper has an immigration detainer hold.

34-year-old Oscar Bladimir Argueta was charged with assault and kidnapping a middle school girl.

Argueta was denied bail at his court hearing on Friday. The alleged kidnapping took place this past Thursday.

Authorities responded Thursday morning after a female student said that she had been abducted.

CBS News Baltimore Reported:

A man is facing charges after Baltimore County police said he abducted a middle school student on Thursday, April 30.

Oscar Bladimir Argueta Argueta, 34, was charged with kidnapping and assault after the alleged incident in the Vintage Court and Cranbrook Road area of Cockeysville, officials said.

A judge denied Argueta bail Friday afternoon.

Police were called to Cockeysville Middle School around 7:50 a.m. after a student reported that she had been abducted.

“The student told officers that she was walking to school when a man approached, identifying himself as a family friend who had recognized her from church. He persuaded her to get into his gray Toyota Camry, telling her that her family sent him, according to police.” CBS News Baltimore reported.

After the girl got into the car, the accused took her to several locations before dropping her off at school. That is when she reported what happened to her.

After the police interviewed the girl’s mother, she said no one was permitted to pick up her daughter.

Argueta took her to a park and even stopped at a cemetery before the girl demanded he take her to school. He eventually listened to her and dropped her off at school.

According to the police, the suspect touched the girl inappropriately. He even climbed into the back seat and asked her, in Spanish, if she had a boyfriend. He even asked to kiss her.

After cursing at him and demanding to be taken to school, he complied. He also said he was sorry and told her not to tell anyone.

Argueta is being represented by a public defender and is looking at up to 40 years in prison if convicted of second-degree assault and kidnapping a minor.

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Indian realtor tells Canadian judge he abducted 9-year-old boy because it’s ‘acceptable in his culture,’ begs not to be deported

An Indian real estate agent in Ontario, Canada has claimed to a judge that it was a “cultural misunderstanding” when he lured a boy into his vehicle and abducted him. He is now facing deportation from the country.

Manoj Govindbalunikam, 37, was given an 18-month sentence earlier in April after being convicted of abducting a 9-year-old boy in August 2023. He pleaded not guilty to abducting the boy and then buying the young lad ice cream as well as toys. Police later found photos of him with the boy in his yellow Chevrolet Camaro.

While in court, Govindbalunikam’s lawyer asked that his punishment be reduced to a conditional discharge. In doing so, he would be able to avoid getting deported back to India.

“A term of imprisonment of six months or more would render Mr. Govindbalunikam inadmissible under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act, and he could face deportation,” the attorney said, per the Daily Mail. The lawyer claimed the incident was a misunderstanding and that luring the boy with the toys and ice cream would be “considered acceptable in his culture.”

“The subject also admitted offering the victim a toy and food as a kind gesture with no intention or desire to do something wrong or harmful,” the attorney argued.

Govindbalunikam also claimed that the charges against him were racist and that he “never experienced racial discrimination until his arrest.”

“He claims that conversing with any individual and offering transportation would be considered acceptable in his culture. As such, he claims that this offense is misinterpreted on how authorities have perceived his actions,” the attorney added in the hearing.

The explanation that the abduction was a “misunderstanding” was rejected by the judge. Police said that the real estate agent lured the boy to his car with a fidget spinner and then gave him his real estate agent business info. After the child went walking home, Govindbalunikam offered to give him a ride.

After telling the boy to ditch his bike, he drove the 9-year-old to a tavern where he “purchased an ice cream for the victim.” Witnesses at the tavern recognized the boy, but not Govindbalunikam, and called the police.

“Mr Govindbalunikam has been here for over a decade and has worked in two demanding fields,” the judge said in his ruling.

“I do not accept that this abduction was as a result of a ‘cultural misunderstanding’ whereby he mistakenly believed that it was acceptable to take a child. He has been a resident of Canada for too long to suggest that this was an innocent error,” the judge added.

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Israel Attacks Gaza Flotilla Near Greek Waters

On Wednesday evening Israeli naval forces attacked the Global Sumud Flotilla (GSF) to Gaza. 

An unknown number of Israeli military ships went over 700 miles to attack the 54-ship flotilla that was headed for Gaza.

It was attempting to break the illegal Israeli naval blockade and to bring worldwide attention to the continuing genocide of Palestinians in Gaza; the Israeli ethnic cleansing of the West Bank; the destruction and occupation of southern Lebanon and the attacks on Iran.

Twenty-one boats were attacked by Israeli naval forces about 80 nautical miles west of the Greek island of Crete in international waters. 

One hundred seventy nine participants from 33 countries were taken against their will from boats that were damaged by Israeli naval forces and put onto a commercial cargo ship that may arrive at the Israeli port of Ashdod around Saturday.

We anticipate that they will be processed at a dock facility in Ashdod, then transported to an Israeli prison and in three-to-five days be deported from the country with a 10-100 year ban on returning to Israel.

That means that one cannot get to the West Bank for actions in solidarity with Palestinians who are under attack by Zionist Israeli settlers who steal Palestinian land and animals and burn Palestinian houses and cars. 

Fifteen U.S. citizens were among the 179 that were kidnapped by Israeli forces.

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Neighbor Says One Dead and Three Detained After SWAT Team Raids Home as Part of Nancy Guthrie Investigation

A dramatic Friday night SWAT raid tied to the kidnapping of 84-year-old Nancy Guthrie ended with one person shooting himself in the head as law enforcement closed in, a neighbor claimed to local media.

According to a Shadow Hills resident who spoke directly to KVOA News 4 Tucson, she witnessed three people being detained during the operation, and says another individual turned a gun on himself.

The statement had not been confirmed or denied by any law enforcement agency as of early Saturday morning.

KVOA reports:

A Shadow Hills resident tells News 4 Tucson that she witnessed three people being detained during a SWAT operation on Friday night. According to an unconfirmed report by a neighbor, another person shot himself in the head.

This comes after a SWAT situation occurred in the Shadow Hills neighborhood on Feb. 13. A man and a woman were detained at the house, and a third person was detained in a traffic stop, according to sources close to the investigation.

A neighbor also spoke to Kevin Posobiec of Human Events, making the same claim.

It is unclear if he spoke to the same neighbor or an additional one.

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Democrat Pima County Sheriff is Blocking FBI Access to Key Evidence After DNA and Glove Found Inside Nancy Guthrie Home

The FBI says the Democrat Pima County Sheriff is blocking evidence in the Nancy Guthrie disappearance case, according to Reuters and Fox News.

The Pima County Sheriff is blocking FBI access to key evidence in the investigation into Nancy Guthrie, according to Reuters.

— Brian Entin (@BrianEntin) February 13, 2026

According to reporting from Fox News, DNA and a glove were found inside of Nancy Guthrie’s home and Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos is blocking the feds from examining the new evidence.

“The FBI wanted to send DNA and a glove found inside the house to their lab at Quantico Virginia for testing. The sheriff here, the Pima County Sheriff, insisted instead on sending it to a private lab that is based in Florida!” – Fox News reported.

“Now obviously you would think that there is nowhere better in the country, never even in the world, than the FBI’s lab in Quantico for that kind of testing.”

“The Guthrie family hoping tonight that the infighting stops and finding Nancy Guthrie really gets underway here, because that is what the Guthrie family wants to hear. Not the people are fighting about who has jurisdiction, but what they’re doing to find Nancy Guthrie.”

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REVEALED: Here is the Pivotal Error the Democrat Pima County Sheriff Made that Hampered the Investigation into Nancy Guthrie’s Alleged Abduction for Several Hours

The Democrat sheriff running the investigation into the disappearance of NBC anchor Savannah Guthrie’s mother, Nancy, made a critical error due to his own ego, which has hampered the investigation.

The Daily Mail reported on Friday that the Pima County Sheriff’s Office failed to launch its Cessna aircraft, equipped with high-resolution thermal-imaging cameras, for several hours.

This was reportedly due to a staffing shortage and lack of pilots, thanks to Sheriff Chris Nanos.

The Pima County Sheriff’s Deputies Association president, Sgt. Aaron Crossm, told The Daily Mail that possible pilots for the aircraft were moved to another unit before Nancy’s disappearance.

Fox News secured a statement that the pilot of Pima County’s high-tech search aircraft had been disciplined following an argument with Nanos. He was reassigned to street patrol as a punishment despite appealing the decision to the sheriff.

As a result, the aircraft’s takeoff was delayed by several hours after Guthrie was reported missing around noon Sunday.

“Three hours in a search for a vulnerable adult is an eternity,” a law enforcement source told Fox News.

The aircraft was eventually launched at 5 pm.

The Pima County Deputies Organization criticized the decision to reassign the pilot and noted that it was part of a pattern of failed leadership decisions by Nanos.

While failing to launch the aircraft on time was the biggest error Nanos was responsible for, there was another inexcusable one during the search for Nancy Guthrie.

According to the Arizona Republic, Nanos admitted that his department released Guthrie’s home as a crime scene too quickly, then returned days later to recover additional evidence.

Nanos said that the scene should have remained secured longer, and other agencies should have been called in earlier.

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