India, Feb. 6 -- A close friend of Savannah Guthrie believes the Today show anchor's emotional public appeal could prompt a shift in the search for her missing mother, Nancy Guthrie, who was abducted from her Tucson home over the weekend.

Speaking to the Daily Mail, retired local television journalist Lupita Murillo described Guthrie's nearly four-minute Instagram video as "heartbreaking", suggesting it could trigger memories or tips that investigators have so far been missing.

"I think it's going to produce something," Murillo said, speaking about the decision to go public. "That must have been the hardest thing she's ever had to do. And it was. it was very impactful."

Murillo, a long-time Tucson TV figure who retired in 2024, first w...