A Torrance man faces federal charges for allegedly sending an “impostor ransom demand” through text messages to relatives of 84-year-old Nancy Guthrie, the mother of NBC “Today” show host Savannah Guthrie, who went missing on Saturday, Jan. 31, court documents show.
Authorities accuse Derrick Callella, 42, of sending two texts to a daughter and son-in-law of Nancy Guthrie asking, “Did you get the bitcoin were (sic) waiting on our end for the transaction,” on Wednesday, according to a criminal complaint filed Thursday, Feb. 5.
Federal authorities learned the phone number was connected to a computer, got the IP address from where the messages were sent, and determined they were associated with Callella’s home, the complaint says.
Callella allegedly admitted to sending the two text messages and told agents that he pulled family information from a website and that he had been following the case and watching television, the complaint says.
He said he “was trying to see if the family would respond,” the document says. Three minutes after sending the messages, Callella allegedly called a family member.
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