Crypto payments are playing a growing role in the fast-moving disappearance case of Nancy Guthrie, the mother of the 'Today' show host Savannah Guthrie. On Tuesday, there was activity in the Bitcoin account listed in a recent ransom note, TMZ reported. TMZ and two other local Arizona outlets, KGUN 9 and KOLD, previously reported receiving a ransom note, in which the purported kidnappers asked for Bitcoin in exchange for Nancy Guthrie.
In order to pay the ransom, the Guthrie family would have to acquire Bitcoin, typically by opening an account with a crypto exchange, according a spokesperson at the blockchain analysis firm Chainalysis. The family could also send the money through an intermediary. In either case, they would then transfer the requested amount to the wallet address provided by the captors.
Beijing's National Computer Virus Emergency Response Center (CVERC) said the theft was not the work of outside hackers. Instead, the agency called it a "state-level operation" allegedly orchestrated by U.S. intelligence. The seized Bitcoin now sits at roughly $13.3 billion. The U.S. Department of Justice said the action followed standard legal procedures. Still, China called the move a "state-level cyber theft." Analysts say the dispute has turned a legal matter into a major geopolitical standoff.
