Wowsers: More Info on Man Detained in Guthrie Case, and Wild Interviews With Him and His Mother-in-Law

There has definitely been an uptick in activity and information in the case of 84-year-old missing Arizona woman Nancy Guthrie, but unfortunately, her whereabouts and well-being remain a mystery, with her family still desperate for answers as the 11th day of the investigation gets underway.

As RedState previously reported, Mrs. Guthrie, who has medical issues that require prescription medication, was last seen the night of January 31, around 9:45 p.m. local time, after being dropped off at her Catalina Foothills home by her son-in-law, Tommaso Cioni. He is married to Guthrie's eldest daughter, Annie. Mrs. Guthrie also has two other adult children: NBC's "Today Show" co-anchor Savannah Guthrie, and son Camron Guthrie.

Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos has said he believes Nancy Guthrie was abducted as she slept in her bed that night, and that some of the ransom notes that have been sent were being taken seriously. Though authorities previously maintained that they had no suspects and no persons of interest, Annie Guthrie's neighborhood has been heavily canvassed and her home searched by investigators. And on Tuesday night, news broke that a man had been taken into custody for questioning.

The man's name is Carlos Palazuelos. His mother-in-law gave a wild interview regarding what allegedly went down at her Rio Rico, Arizona home, which is where she says Palazuelos and his wife and children are currently living:

“He works from Monday through Friday. He’s home Friday,” Palazuelos’ mother-in-law, Josefina, told NewsNation in an interview published on Wednesday, February 11, following Palazuelos’ release from police custody. “He stays home Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Goes back to work on Monday. So on the weekends, he stays at my house. He doesn’t go nowhere.”
Addressing where Palazuelos was on the night of January 31 — the night that Nancy, 84, was last seen by her family — Josefina said, “Yeah, he was here [at my house]. … I’m positive he was here at my house. He was here for his kids on the weekend.”

The woman described her son-in-law as a delivery driver and said the family was told that a tipster led authorities to their home.

“They're investigating my son-in-law. He's not have nothing to do with that either," she remarked, while also stating she consented to the search because they have nothing to hide.

Watch:

the mother in law of the person who was detained. She says the FBI searched her house, told her they received a tip that Nancy Guthrie was inside. 🤯🤯🤯🤯

“They came out telling us that they had somebody gave a tip that the lady was in my house.”

“They're investigating my… pic.twitter.com/UBSoBCJNZh
— Chuckyfamous! (@Nem_Famous) February 11, 2026

Palazuelos has since been released, and did an interview with Fox News soon after, where he said he was told he was pulled over during a traffic stop and detained because, apparently, it was believed that his eyes looked like the eyes of the individual seen in the camera footage released Tuesday:

MATT FINN: "Do you think you might have delivered a package to Nancy Guthrie's house?"
CARLOS PALAZUELOS: "I don't know. It might have been a possibility. I don't know."

Watch:

🚨BREAKING: Man who says he was detained for questioning in the Nancy Guthrie case talks to FOX News reporter @MattFinnFNC:

MATT FINN: "Do you think you might have delivered a package to Nancy Guthrie's house?"

CARLOS PALAZUELOS: "I don't know. It might have been a… pic.twitter.com/EPSVQNBYyx
— Fox News (@FoxNews) February 11, 2026

In the longer clip, he claimed that the authorities have his phone:

WATCH: The man questioned in relation to the Nancy Guthrie disappearance in Rio Rico, AZ is released. Carlos Palazuelos explains what happened to him. pic.twitter.com/1CUYWaIW6a
— Matt Finn (@MattFinnFNC) February 11, 2026

FBI Director Kash Patel told Sean Hannity Tuesday night that "we are looking at people who, as we say, are persons of interest."

Anyone with information is urged to contact the sheriff's office tip line at 520-351-4900 or 1-800-CALL-FBI.

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