Nancy Guthrie sheriff – already accused of botching the case in his ‘ego’ – rejected US’ top search-and-rescue organization’s help

The Pima County Sheriff’s Department reportedly turned down help from a volunteer search-and-rescue group looking for missing 84-year-old Nancy Guthrie, the group’s leader claimed.

Brian Trascher, vice president of the United Cajun Navy, told News Nation that his team offered resources to help search for Guthrie, who vanished from her Tucson, Arizona, home in February. He said the offer was not accepted by local authorities. His group had partner organizations willing to travel to the area and assist with the search, though he did not specify exactly when the offer was made.

“We have a lot of good resources we could have brought to the area,” Trascher said. He added, “Other partner groups that we work with in the area are willing to come to the area and help us search.”

Volunteer group says its offer of K-9 and drone teams was turned down

According to Trascher, his proposal would have included K-9 units and drone teams to search parts of the Southwest. He said the sheriff’s department did not accept this help. “For some reason, they just decided they were not going to take the outside help. So we just kind of went back to what we’re doing,” Trascher said.

Trascher also said the decision not to work with his group appeared to reflect a broader policy by the Pima County Sheriff’s Office of declining outside assistance in the search for Guthrie. Search-and-rescue teams like his are typically deployed for a range of emergencies, including cases where rescue crews responded after dark to a distress call in mountainous terrain.

Trascher believed there was a strong chance Guthrie ended up somewhere along the border. “We really felt strongly that there was a good chance that she could have ended up somewhere along the border,” he said.

This is not the first time the local Sheriff’s department has been criticized for its role in the investigation. Back in March, Michael Gould, a former NYPD investigator, told The Post that Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos couldn’t handle the case properly because of “ego, incompetence, and politics.” 

“It could be only one of these three things: ego, incompetence, or politics, because he’s running for office,” the founding member of the NYPD’s K-9 unit said. Nanos has faced criticism over his handling of the case, with some critics alleging that leads were mishandled in ways that could have affected the chances of finding Guthrie. 

Critics have also alleged that the sheriff’s department gave up control of the Guthrie home only a few days after her disappearance was reported. Additionally, critics have pointed to the department’s decision to send DNA evidence from the scene to a private lab rather than to the FBI, which they claim could have processed the material more quickly. 

Nanos has previously defended his handling of the case, saying his actions were appropriate.

According to The Post, a spokesperson for the Pima County Sheriff’s Department confirmed that officers had declined to work directly with the United Cajun Navy, though the spokesperson said the department had thanked the group for its offer. 

“They were notified that at this time, the Pima County Sheriff’s Department will not be utilizing external operational support. We are grateful for their offer to assist and for their continued interest in supporting this effort,” the spokesperson said in an emailed statement to The Post.

The department’s decision not to work with the volunteer group is the latest development in what has reportedly been a series of controversies surrounding the monthslong search for Guthrie. Search-and-rescue resources are sometimes strained by unrelated incidents, such as a case where a teen’s prank triggered a false alarm that drew a large emergency response.

The circumstances surrounding Guthrie’s disappearance remain under investigation, and no additional details about the current status of the search have been confirmed by authorities. The Pima County Sheriff’s Department has not provided further comment beyond its statement regarding the United Cajun Navy’s offer of assistance.