The United Cajun Navy claimed Chris Nanos turned away their help in searching for Nancy Guthrie.

June 30 2026, Published 7:55 p.m. ET

Embattled Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos has been accused of turning away highly trained "outside help" in the desperate search for still missing Nancy Guthrie, RadarOnline.com can reveal.

The United Cajun Navy says it offered to help for "months," even presenting a "detailed" search strategy, but was repeatedly shut out by Nanos, despite his department's mounting need for breakthroughs after the elderly woman was taken from her Tucson, Arizona, home in the early hours of February 1.

Article continues below advertisement

The USCN had members at the ready to search with drone and dog teams for Nancy Guthrie.

During a June 29 appearance on NewsNation, United Cajun Navy Vice President Brian Trascher claimed to NewsNation's Katie Pavlich Tonight (weeknights, 10 p.m. ET) that the Pima County Sheriff's Office issued a "blanket declination" to accept outside assistance, alleging Nanos rejected offers from his team of highly trained law enforcement officers and combat veterans.

Trascher said the nonprofit UCN could have provided the "ability to deploy K-9 teams and drone teams" in the search for Savannah Guthrie's 84-year-old mother.

"We really felt strongly that there was a good chance that she could have ended up somewhere along the border, just because there's a lot of human remains that get found down there," he told host Katie Pavlich about the U.S. Mexico border, which lies about 60 miles from Tucson.

Article continues below advertisement

Savannah Guthrie admiited she still 'cries' every day on the way to and from work due to the agony of her missing mom.

Trascher said the UCN, which was founded in the aftermath of 2005's devastating Hurricane Katrina, is made up of "a lot of people who are familiar with the area and are good at searching," referring to the border.

They hoped to be a "force multiplier" by serving as an "extra set of eyes, ears, hands, and feet" to help bring some sort of "closure" to the Guthrie family.

"It makes it harder when you see Savannah on TV all the time, knowing what she's going through... Behind her eyes, you can tell she's really suffering," Trascher said of the Today co-host trying to soldier on with no trace of her mother for nearly 150 days.

Article continues below advertisement

Article continues below advertisement

Brian Trascher said the USCN has a 'good track record' at locating missing persons.

While Trascher said he isn't privy to how Nanos and his detectives were handling the search for Nancy, he was clear about what the United Cajun Navy could have added to the operation.

"We're very good at search and rescue. We have a lot of resources we could have brought to the area," he shared, adding that they also have partner groups the organization works with.

Trascher was especially critical of Nanos turning away his group's help, as well as other operations, in the critical first few days and weeks after Nancy was kidnapped.

"Early on, when we were closer to the abduction date, it would have been a lot more beneficial," he said about the UCN having a "good track record" of finding missing persons.

Trascher had to admit, "At this point, I hate to say it, you'd just be looking for remains."

Sheriff Chris Nanos has been accused of badly fumbling the Nancy Guthrie search and investigation.

Trascher noted that finding Nancy's body would still "be valuable to the family to have that closure."

"But for some reason, they decided they weren't going to take the outside help," he sneered about the Pima County Sheriff's controversial decision, and that the UCN eventually went back to prepping for the 2026 tornado season in the Midwest and the 2026 hurricane season, where their efforts are appreciated and needed.

The United Cajun Navy isn't the only group taking aim at Nanos. FBI Director Kash Patel has also blasted what he described as efforts to keep federal agents on the sidelines for the critical first "four days" after Nancy's disappearance.

Patel also called out Nanos for refusing to send key DNA evidence to the FBI's elite Quantico crime lab, instead shipping it to a private facility in Florida. In April, the mixed sample was finally handed over to the feds for further analysis to help identify a suspect.