Man Arrested for Demanding Bitcoin Ransom from Guthrie Family
A Torrance, California man has been charged with sending a ransom demand for Nancy Guthrie, the mother of Savannah Guthrie and other family members, in the wake of her disappearance. Derrick Callella allegedly demanded Bitcoin from Nancy's children, who were trying to communicate with their kidnapped mother.
Callella sent text messages to both the daughter and son-in-law of Nancy, claiming that a Bitcoin transaction was pending. The messages were sent two days after a local Tucson media outlet received a ransom demand listing a Bitcoin wallet address. The texts were also sent shortly after Nancy's family published a video online asking their mother's kidnappers to contact them.
According to authorities, Callella used an application to create a fake phone number and was tracked down through his email account. When questioned about the text messages, he admitted that he had sent them in an attempt to see if the family would respond.
However, Callella is not linked to the Bitcoin ransom demand itself, according to the federal complaint. He has been charged with transmitting a demand for ransom and intending to abuse, threaten, or harass using a telecommunication device.
FBI Special Agent Heith Janke issued a warning on Thursday following Callella's arrest, stating that "To those imposters who are trying to take advantage and profit from this situation, we will investigate and ensure you are held accountable for your actions." The FBI emphasized that any action taken on a ransom is ultimately decided by the family.
The Guthrie family has been open about their search for Nancy, who went missing early Sunday. Savannah Guthrie recently addressed reports of a ransom letter in a video message with her siblings, stating that they want to hear from anyone who knows information about Nancy's whereabouts without being manipulated by fake messages or images.
A Torrance, California man has been charged with sending a ransom demand for Nancy Guthrie, the mother of Savannah Guthrie and other family members, in the wake of her disappearance. Derrick Callella allegedly demanded Bitcoin from Nancy's children, who were trying to communicate with their kidnapped mother.
Callella sent text messages to both the daughter and son-in-law of Nancy, claiming that a Bitcoin transaction was pending. The messages were sent two days after a local Tucson media outlet received a ransom demand listing a Bitcoin wallet address. The texts were also sent shortly after Nancy's family published a video online asking their mother's kidnappers to contact them.
According to authorities, Callella used an application to create a fake phone number and was tracked down through his email account. When questioned about the text messages, he admitted that he had sent them in an attempt to see if the family would respond.
However, Callella is not linked to the Bitcoin ransom demand itself, according to the federal complaint. He has been charged with transmitting a demand for ransom and intending to abuse, threaten, or harass using a telecommunication device.
FBI Special Agent Heith Janke issued a warning on Thursday following Callella's arrest, stating that "To those imposters who are trying to take advantage and profit from this situation, we will investigate and ensure you are held accountable for your actions." The FBI emphasized that any action taken on a ransom is ultimately decided by the family.
The Guthrie family has been open about their search for Nancy, who went missing early Sunday. Savannah Guthrie recently addressed reports of a ransom letter in a video message with her siblings, stating that they want to hear from anyone who knows information about Nancy's whereabouts without being manipulated by fake messages or images.
sending fake texts asking for bitcoin ransom is so not cool. i feel bad for the guthrie family having to go through this, especially when they're trying to search for their mom nancy. the fact that he created a fake phone number and tried to get a response from them just to see if they'd fall for it... that's just low 
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. this situation is just heartbreaking, and the family deserves all our support and positive vibes 
It's really disturbing how this guy Callella would resort to sending fake ransom demands just to see if the Guthrie family would respond, I mean what's his motive? Is he even getting paid for this? 
The fact that he used an app to create a fake phone number and was tracked down through his email account shows how easily people can be caught these days. 
my heart goes out to nancy and her kids, i hope they get some closure soon. its crazy that dude just wanted to see if the family would respond by sending fake texts he has no idea what he's gotten himself into 
anyhoo fbi should keep doing their thing and make sure these scammers are caught for good 
so like this dude Callella is trying to extort the Guthrie family and then gets caught for just trying to see if someone would respond... what a weirdo 
, like I get that he wanted attention but sending ransom texts? that's just wrong 
. Anyway, FBI is on it 
and they're warning others not to mess with people in similar situations 
, good on 'em! 
i'm low-key impressed that he got caught so fast 
apparently he used a fake phone number and email account to create his whole ruse 
. anyhoo, here are some crazy stats on ransom demands: in 2022, there were over 10k reported ransom attempts worldwide 
. and bitcoin's been gaining traction as a ransom payment method - did you know it can be sold for up to $60k per coin? 
meanwhile, the FBI's seeing an increase in these types of cases... since 2013, they've seen a 500% rise in ransom demands 
that's not cool. btw, here's a chart showing how many ppl use bitcoin for illicit activities: [insert chart]
, like, who tries to scam a fam like this?! 
Callella's attempt was just pathetic, using a fake phone number and all 
. The FBI should totally be giving some major props to the Guthrie fam for staying strong in the face of this drama 
, and to all the fake message scammers out there: we see you, we know what's up 
they should give him some serious time for this tho I mean who does that? its not like hes helping the family find their mom its just a sick way to make a buck 
just waiting for an opportunity to take advantage of someone in need
. I'm glad the FBI caught him, but it's clear this kind of thing is going to keep happening until we get some serious laws on the books to deal with people like Callella 
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And what's with the Bitcoin thing? Like, isn't that just a fancy way of saying "we want money"? 
. The Guthrie family deserves better than to be manipulated by these fake messages and images... they should be able to hear from anyone who knows something without being hassled 
this is such a scary situation for the Guthrie family, especially their mom Nancy who just went missing... i can only imagine how stressful and worried they must be right now 
The FBI needs to crack down on these people who think they can exploit others for personal gain 