Former New York Rep. Pete King on Sunday told Newsmax that the kidnapping of Nancy Guthrie, the mother of "Today" co-anchor Savannah Guthrie, is "unbearable."
He described the family’s willingness to pay a ransom as an act of desperation driven by fear and uncertainty.
"Well, anyone who knows Savannah Guthrie, anyone who follows her on television, knows she's a very decent person," the New York Republican said on Newsmax's "Wake Up America Weekend." "What she and her family are going through is just unbearable."
And at this point, King said, "I think what they’re saying is they are willing to do whatever they have to do to get their mother back."
King said a recent message from the family struck him as troubling in tone, suggesting some might not believe Nancy Guthrie is alive.
"The whole tone of it was more, seems like almost fatalistic," King said.
On Saturday, Savannah Guthrie told her mother's potential kidnappers that their family is prepared to pay for her safe return, as the frantic search for the 84-year-old Arizona woman entered its seventh day.
"We received your message, and we understand. We beg you now to return our mother to us so that we can celebrate with her," she said in a video posted on social media, flanked by her siblings.
"This is the only way we will have peace. This is very valuable to us, and we will pay," Guthrie said.
King said law enforcement resources remain heavily focused on the case and noted that investigators believe it may be nearing a conclusion.
"I’ve spoken to some detectives who have some idea what’s going on," King said. "They think it’s getting closer to the end. But again, no one knows."
He described the case as highly unusual.
"I don’t know of anyone like it that I’ve heard of, of high celebrity kidnapping, which is not really a high celebrity," King said. "It’s a woman in her 80s.
"Her daughter is somewhat famous, but not known to be controversial or a celebrity in the usual sense of the word."
King said federal authorities are closely involved.
"All the resources are going into it," he said. "Certainly, the FBI is very much on top of this."
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