More than six months after Nancy Guthrie vanished from her Arizona home, a prominent forensic psychologist is questioning one of the biggest assumptions surrounding the case: What if the ransom notes were never written by the person who took her?

The disappearance of the 84-year-old mother of “TODAY” co-anchor Savannah Guthrie has generated an enormous investigation since she vanished from her Catalina Foothills home in the early hours of February 1.

Authorities have said evidence found at the residence indicates Nancy was taken against her will. Yet despite months of investigative work, no publicly identified suspect has been charged and Nancy has not been found.

Now, forensic psychologist Dr. Mark Safarik has offered a different interpretation of what may have happened that night.

Rather than viewing the case as a carefully planned kidnapping for ransom, Safarik believes the available circumstances could be more consistent with a burglary that unexpectedly escalated.

Under that theory, whoever entered Nancy’s home may originally have intended to steal valuables rather than abduct her. After encountering Nancy inside the residence, the situation could have changed dramatically.

Safarik also questioned whether the ransom communications that emerged after Nancy disappeared were genuinely connected to whoever entered her home.

Two notes sent to Tucson television station KOLD were eventually released publicly by the Pima County Sheriff’s Department. One demanded millions of dollars in Bitcoin and claimed Nancy was alive. A later message claimed she had died.

But neither claim has been publicly established as fact.

Safarik believes the communications could potentially have been created by someone attempting to exploit a case that was already receiving enormous national attention.

That possibility would dramatically change how the ransom notes are interpreted.

Instead of providing a direct window into the motives of Nancy’s abductor, the messages could represent a separate layer of deception surrounding an already complicated investigation.

There are reasons investigators cannot simply dismiss them, however.

Authorities have previously indicated that the notes contained details they considered worthy of investigation, and the sheriff’s department took the unusual step of releasing the communications publicly on July 31.

Sheriff Chris Nanos said investigators hoped someone might recognize distinctive wording, language patterns or writing style contained in the messages.

The strategy generated a response.

The department subsequently reported a slight increase in tips, saying investigators were following up on the information received from members of the public.

But the fundamental question remains unresolved: Did the person who wrote the notes actually know what happened to Nancy?

Investigators have never publicly confirmed that the descriptions contained in the communications accurately matched everything found inside Nancy’s home.

The burglary theory is also not entirely new.

Earlier reporting indicated investigators had considered whether the incident may initially have involved an intended burglary. What remains unclear is why Nancy would then have been taken from the residence and what happened afterward.

Other evidence continues to complicate the picture.

Authorities previously released surveillance images showing a masked and armed individual near Nancy’s home around the time of her disappearance. Investigators have spent months examining forensic evidence, digital information and leads submitted by the public.

Yet the identity of that individual — and whether the person is connected to the ransom communications — has not been publicly established.

That leaves investigators facing several possibilities.

The disappearance could have been a planned abduction. It could have begun as another crime and escalated unexpectedly. The ransom notes could have been written by someone directly involved — or, as Safarik now suggests, they could have been an elaborate attempt by an outsider to insert themselves into a high-profile investigation.

For Nancy’s family, those competing theories ultimately lead back to the same unanswered question.

Where is Nancy Guthrie?

More than six months after she disappeared, authorities are still searching for the evidence that can connect the person seen near her home, the events inside the residence and the mysterious messages that followed.

Until that connection is established, the ransom notes remain potentially important evidence — but not proof of what actually happened.

Main Sources: Fox News, ABC News, Arizona’s Family, KOLD News 13