Genetic genealogy that caught notorious killers now used in Nancy Guthrie case

FBI uses investigative genetic genealogy to analyze DNA in Nancy Guthrie kidnapping case, the same technology that solved Bryan Kohberger and Golden State Killer cases. Nancy Guthrie Genetic genealogy that caught notorious killers now used in Nancy Guthrie case Investigative genetic genealogy has cracked cases like Golden State Killer and Idaho student murders after traditional databases failed By Julia Bonavita Fox News Published February 17, 2026 7:05pm EST Facebook Twitter Threads Flipboard Comments Print Email Add Fox News on Google close Video Forensic genealogist suggests alleged assailant in Nancy Guthrie disappearance was wearing two gloves Dr. Colleen Fitzpatrick, president and founder of Identifinders Forensic Genealogy, analyzes the results of the DNA test of a glove recovered in the Nancy Guthrie search on ‘The Will Cain Show.’ NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles! Investigators looking to track down Nancy Guthrie’s suspected kidnappers are turning to a relatively new technology that has been attributed to solving some of the most prolific criminal and cold cases in American history. Investigative genetic genealogy (IGG) is defined as "the science of using genetic and genealogical methods to generate leads for law enforcement entities investigating crimes and identifying human remains," according to the International Society of Genetic Genealogy. Investigators use a DNA sample to search for genetic familial matches, ultimately looking to narrow down potential identities by zeroing in on close relatives of the individual. On Tuesday, the FBI confirmed to Fox News Digital that IGG was being used to test DNA found on a black glove discovered two miles from Nancy Guthrie’s home and other DNA samples found inside her house. HARVEY LEVIN GIVES EXPLOSIVE UPDATE ON PURPORTED NANCY LEVIN RANSOM NOTE ON ‘HANNITY’ Savannah Guthrie and her mother, Nancy Guthrie, are pictured together in 2023. (Nathan Congleton/NBC via Getty Images) The move comes after both samples did not find a match in the nationwide law enforcement database, CODIS – which only includes individuals previously known to authorities. The technology has been used to solve several high-profile cases in recent years, with the FBI now turning to IGG in hopes of identifying the DNA found on the glove discovered two miles from Nancy Guthrie’s home and other samples located inside the house. Here is a look at previous cases in which IGG helped authorities locate their suspect.FORMER FBI BEHAVIORAL ANALYST SAYS GUTHRIE SUSPECT AMATEUR CRIMINAL, SAVANNAH'S LATEST MESSAGE TAILORED TO HIM This image released by the FBI show an armed individual appearing to have tampered with the camera at Nancy Guthrie's front door the morning of her disappearance in Tucson, Arizona, Sunday, February 1, 2026. (Provided by FBI)The Idaho Murders Immediately following the brutal murders of four University of Idaho college students on Nov. 13, 2022, investigators raced to track down the person responsible for killing Madison Mogen, Ethan Chapin, Xana Kernodle and Kaylee Goncalves. Using DNA found on a Ka-Bar knife sheath left behind at the crime scene, authorities sent samples to forensics lab Othram after coming back empty-handed when using CODIS.IDAHO KILLER LEFT BEHIND 'CATASTROPHIC' EVIDENCE THAT FAST-TRACKED HIS CAPTURE, INVESTIGATORS REVEAL Bryan Kohberger appears at the Ada County Courthouse for his sentencing hearing, Wednesday, July 23, 2025, in Boise, Idaho, for brutally stabbing four University of Idaho students to death. (AP Photo/Kyle Green, Pool)Othram was then able to create a DNA profile that matched items pulled from Bryan Kohberger’s family trash at their Pennsylvania home, leading investigators to "a male as not being excluded as the biological father of Suspect Profile," according to the affidavit. Kohberger was subsequently taken into custody on Dec. 30, 2022 and pleaded guilty to the quadruple murders last summer as part of a plea deal to escape the potential death penalty. He is serving four consecutive life sentences, plus another 10 years.NANCY GUTHRIE CASE INVESTIGATORS FIND SET OF BLACK GLOVES NEAR ROADSIDEThe Golden State Killer More than three decades after 13 people were murdered and dozens more raped, IGG led investigators to finally track down one of the most prolific killers in California’s history. Using DNA collected from the crime scene, authorities were able to match a profile created for the Golden State Killer to online genetic profiles. The results pointed investigators toward a relative of former police officer Joseph James DeAngelo, who was arrested in 2018 and later charged with dozens of crimes.NANCY GUTHRIE CASE: 5 KEY EVIDENCE PIECES SO FAR Joseph James DeAngelo, right, and public defender Joseph Cress speak together during the first day of victim impact statements at the Gordon D. Schaber Sacramento County Courthouse on Tuesday, Aug. 18, 2020, in Sacramento, Calif. "We were confident that he was born between 1940 and 1960," Paul Holes, a former investigator with the Contra Costa County Sheriff’s Office, told Fox News during a 2021 interview for the Fox Nation documentary and Fox News A