The past few weeks have proven grueling for Today show host Savannah Guthrie as the hunt for her 84-year-old mother, Nancy Guthrie, continues to perplex law enforcement and captivate public attention.

The Pima County Sheriff’s Department believes Nancy was abducted from her multi-million-dollar residence in the Catalina Foothills, an upscale unincorporated community situated north of Tucson, Arizona, with a mystery man who claimed he “saw her 5 days ago” offering chilling new proof.

Since her disappearance was reported, authorities have exhausted numerous leads in their investigation, yet progress appears stalled. It comes after an ex-FBI agent revealed the hidden codeword that Savannah used in her message to the kidnappers.

Nevertheless, renewed interest in the ongoing search emerged after individuals connected to the case discovered a suspicious object retrieved from a waterway near Nancy’s residence.

Two individuals, reportedly true crime content creators, were observed extracting a large white barrel from a river using a retrieval tool whilst investigating potential evidence.

“Could these be clues. Yesterday @JLRINVESTIGATES and @DadsGoneLive went searching,” true crime account @TruCrimeBeliebr posted, reports the Mirror US.

The account elaborated, “They pulled up to some sort of pond and talked about how bad it smelled. A few minutes later they found a barrel in the water that seemed very heavy like it was filled with something. When I posted about this originally I got a lot of comments about the odor probably just being cow manure. But JLR says he hasn’t seen any cattle around here and it was a pretty decent drive down.”

Additionally, @DadsGoneLive repeatedly noted that flies were swarming around the barrel, stating, “Two other things that struck me, @DadsGoneLive is walking toward the pond and finds and empty box of .2 round bullets. There’s also been rumor that this person is in Mexico or could be in Mexico. @JLRINVESTIGATES found a Modelo can. I know what you’re thinking, it’s not that crazy. I’m white and I love Modelo.

“A lot of people do and we’re also talking about Tucson which has a large population of Mexicans. But it was something I noticed. This is a 10–20 minute drive from the eastern edge of the Catalina Foothills. Could be nothing. Could be something. We will have to wait and find out,” the post wrapped up.

Official investigators have not yet commented on this purported discovery. However, authorities have confirmed finding a body in a Phoenix canal, approximately 182 to 187 km from Nancy’s residence.

“Details on the call indicated that an adult female was on the nearby canal bank and was unresponsive,” police stated. “When officers arrived, they located the woman, who was ultimately pronounced deceased on scene.”

Phoenix police have not yet disclosed any identifying details about the deceased woman, though the Pima County Sheriff’s Department informed Fox News Digital in a statement that they have received no notification of any link to Nancy’s disappearance. The investigation’s sluggish progress has left the 84-year-old’s family members deeply frustrated, particularly her daughter, Savannah, who has put forward a $1 million cash reward for any information that leads to her mother’s safe return or remains.

Surveillance video retrieved from Nancy’s doorbell camera showed a masked individual, potentially two separate suspects, lurking near her entrance during the early morning hours before authorities believe the abduction occurred. Substantial evidence collected from the residence, including blood samples, continues to undergo analysis. Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos cautioned, however, that processing everything could require as long as “a year” especially regarding the DNA materials.

The PCSD confirmed to The Post that the case remains highly active, with approximately 300-400 personnel currently dedicated to the investigation, matching the deployment numbers from when it initially began.