The message landed like a threat, brief and chilling — and for a family already living in fear, it felt like the worst possible confirmation.

According to court documents, a California man has now been charged after allegedly sending ransom-style texts to relatives of missing 84-year-old Nancy Guthrie, whose disappearance has shaken Tucson and drawn national attention due to her daughter, journalist Savannah Guthrie.

What investigators uncovered was not an organized ransom scheme — but something, in its own way, just as disturbing.The Text That Stopped the Family Cold

Federal prosecutors say Derrick Callella, a man in his mid-40s from California, allegedly sent a message referencing bitcoin to members of the Guthrie family shortly after they made a public plea for help.

The message reportedly read:

“Did you get the bitcoin were [sic] waiting on our end for the transaction.”
Minutes later, authorities say he placed a nine-second phone call to another family member.