FBI Director Kash Patel blasted the Arizona sheriff leading the fruitless investigation into Nancy Guthrie’s kidnapping for bungling DNA evidence and shutting the federal agency out of the high-profile probe.
Patel called out embattled Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos for sidelining the FBI after the 84-year-old vanished from her Tucson home, claiming he waved off a bevy of federal agents and snubbed an offer to rush DNA to Quantico – blunders the bureau boss said cost critical time early in the investigation.
“For four days we were kept out of the investigation,” Patel told Fox News’ Sean Hannity on “Hang Out with Sean Hannity,” adding how the FBI raced to assist in a case under state and local jurisdiction.
“I launched hundreds of agents and intel staff to Phoenix and Tucson just for this case, just to be on standby, just to do the canvassing. And we said, we’ll take the DNA, and again, it’s a state and local matter, so it’s their call on where to send the DNA. We have Quantico — the best lab in the world.”
Patel said a plane was ready to rush the evidence to the military hub in Virginia, but Nanos opted to ship it to a private lab in Florida instead.
Hannity called the decision a “bad call.”
“We would have analyzed it within days and maybe gotten better information or more information,” the FBI honcho said.
“Our labs are just better than any other private lab out there and we didn’t get a chance to do that. So, I understand everybody’s frustrations on that.”
Patel stressed that the first 48 hours are “most critical” in any missing person case, claiming that once the FBI was finally let in, they contacted Google and recovered eerie doorbell camera footage showing a masked man lurking outside Guthrie’s doorstep on the night police believe she was taken.
He said the data – or more – could have been uncovered “days before” the bombshell break in the case.
The Pima County Sheriff’s Department denied Patel’s claim, telling The Post in a statement Nanos began working with the FBI “without delay.”
“Sheriff Nanos responded to the scene the night of the incident, providing immediate local leadership and oversight,” the statement said, adding that “A member of the FBI Task Force was also notified and present at that scene working alongside our personnel.”
Officials said decisions regarding evidence were made on scene based on “operational needs.”
“The laboratory utilized by the Pima County Sheriff’s Department and the FBI Laboratory in Quantico have worked in close partnership from the outset and continue to collaborate in the analysis of evidence,” the statement said.
“We remain committed to a thorough, coordinated, and fact-based investigation and will continue working closely with our federal partners as the process moves forward.”
Nanos has come under fire for his handling of the investigation into the disappearance of Guthrie – mother of “Today” host Savannah Guthrie – who is believed to have been taken from her Catalina Foothills home in the early morning hours of Feb. 1.
He has been criticized for clearing Guthrie’s home as a crime scene too quickly, leaning on a private DNA firm instead of the FBI, and failing to deploy key resources like a search plane or cadaver dogs.
Nanos sat down in April for an interview in which he defended his handling of the investigation.
However, police have still not identified any suspects in the 93 days since she vanished.
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