Allegations against Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos, who is investigating the Nancy Guthrie case, have surfaced as Savannah Guthrie’s mother remains missing after being abducted from her Tucson home. According to Fox News Digital, Nanos allegedly carried a loaded, undeclared handgun through a TSA checkpoint at Tucson International Airport in November 2024, an incident report showed.
Fox News Digital reported that it obtained an incident report from November 6, 2024, at Tucson International Airport’s B Concourse, which revealed that a TSA X-ray technician allegedly spotted a loaded handgun inside the sheriff’s carry-on bag and alerted an officer. Airport police then found five rounds in the gun’s magazine and one in the chamber.
The firearm was reportedly undeclared when Nanos went through the checkpoint. This is a violation of TSA regulations for ordinary passengers.
Nanos was not criminally charged, but was required to secure the weapon before continuing his journey. He missed his original flight and later boarded a different flight after returning the gun to his vehicle.
Chris Nanos speaks up about the Nancy Guthrie case
Nanos recently said that the Guthrie case is “not even close” to a cold case. “We have some DNA that we think is still workable,” he said during a 45-minute sit-down interview with longtime Tucson host Bill Buckmaster and Arizona Daily Star columnist Tim Steller on KVOI AM 1030’s Bill Buckmaster Show.
Talking about the investigation, Nanos said that the Sheriff’s Department is still working with the FBI, labs around the country and forensics examiners on “thousands (of hours) of video footage we still have to sort through.”
“The case will get us there. We let the evidence show us the way, and that’s what we base everything on,” Nanos said. “Right now, everything is speculative. We don’t have anything in front of us that says ‘this is who did this, and this is why’.”
Nanos previously also said that the investigation is “growing.” “In terms of leads and working and getting out there, I’d say that’s growing, yeah,” the sheriff said.
