The embattled Pima County Sheriff’s Department turned down an offer from a volunteer search team to help find Nancy Guthrie, the baffled leader of the group claimed.
Brian Trascher, vice president of volunteer search-and-rescue group the United Cajun Navy, said his team was willing and able to help provide “some closure” in the search for the 84-year-old matriarch – who vanished in February from her Tucson, Arizona, home.
Nancy Guthrie, seen here with her daughter Savannah Guthrie, has been missing since February.savannahguthrie/Instagram
The United Cajun Navy had “good resources” to find Nancy Guthrie, according to Trascher.Facebook/Nancy Guthrie
“We have a lot of good resources we could have brought to the area,” Trascher told News Nation. “Other partner groups that we work with in the area are willing to come to the area and help us search.
“We really felt strongly that there was a good chance that she could have ended up somewhere along the border.”
It’s unclear when exactly Trascher offered to help. But he said his proposal – which would have included K-9s and drone teams searching the expanse of the Southwest – was ignored by local authorities.
Brian Trascher, vice president of the United Cajun Navy, said local authorities ignored the group’s offer to help find Nancy Guthrie.NewsNation
“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 told the outlet.
He told News Nation that this was the result of a broader decision by the Pima County Sheriff’s Office not to accept outside help in the search for the missing octogenarian.
A spokesperson for the Pima County Sheriff’s Department said its officers thanked the Cajun Navy for “their concern and willingness,” but that the department was not considering working directly with them.
“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 response to The Post.
Trascher told News Nation that the group’s dismissal from the search was the result of a broader decision by the Pima County Sheriff’s Office to not accept outside help in the search for Nancy Guthrie.James Keivom for NY Post
Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos has been blasted by critics for his handling of the case.http://www.jswoodphotography.com
The revelation of the eyebrow-raising decision is the latest in a series of controversies surrounding the months-long search for Nancy Guthrie.
Sheriff Chris Nanos has been blasted for his handling of the Guthrie case, with many saying the lawman blew leads that could have led to her rescue.
Critics also blasted the sheriff’s department for relinquishing the Guthrie home only days after Nancy’s disappearance, as well as for handing DNA from the scene over to a private lab — even though the FBI could’ve tested it faster.
Nanos has said in the past that his actions were appropriate.
