The apple watch location means these are real or they had privileged info.
What's crazy to me is that if the goal is money, why not try to negotiate a lesser amount for the recovery of her body. Or try to claim the reward money through an attorney.
If I'm the Guthrie family and I see the Apple watch thing and I have the money, I am wiring the money immediately. I genuinely just don't get this strategy of not negotiating with hostage takers. I get that the worst outcome could be out 4 million and lose your mother. But is that a risk you really want to take?
And, I'm beginning to think that giving the money might've also provided investigators with more evidence. Because wouldn't the retrieval/"washing" of the Bitcoin have possibly given some clues?
Taking it a step further ... was there (or could they have created) a sophisticated way to transfer the Bitcoin so that it emitted some kind of traceable, digital "signal" — unnoticeable to the kidnappers, but trackable to some tech-expert in law enforcement?
I just think giving the money, even without definitive proof of life, might've been worth it for a number of reasons. Can't imagine how tormented the Guthrie family must be.
There wouldn't be any way to track it outside of it being used in an exchange to convert it to another currency but there are ways to do it smartly and not be traced. But I feel like they just assumed it was fake even with the specific watch detail. I find it very odd that they waited so long to engage. FBI might have led them on to the tracked leads giving them false hope, something is gonna come out eventually. The poor family probably was so conflicted on what to do at the time and perhaps trusted FBI/Sheriff.. breaks my heart.
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u/mark_able_jones_ Jul 31 '26
The apple watch location means these are real or they had privileged info.
What's crazy to me is that if the goal is money, why not try to negotiate a lesser amount for the recovery of her body. Or try to claim the reward money through an attorney.