A guilty plea has now been entered in one of the ugliest side chapters of the Nancy Guthrie case.
Derrick Callella, 42, of Hawthorne, California, admitted in federal court that he harassed Guthrie’s family while they were desperate for any word about her fate.
Callella pleaded guilty on July 2, 2026, in Tucson federal court to two counts of Harassment Using a Telecommunication Device.
Prosecutors say he contacted Nancy Guthrie’s family on February 4 about a bitcoin transfer, knowing an earlier ransom demand had already been made.
He admitted he was trying to pry for information about the disappearance investigation and harass the family in the process.
TUCSON, Ariz. – Derrick Callella, 42, of Hawthorne, California, pleaded guilty today to two counts of Harassment Using a Telecommunication Device. Sentencing is scheduled for September 10, 2026. @FBIPhoenix https://t.co/xJKWcZeFVR
— US Attorney Arizona (@USAO_AZ) July 2, 2026
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Arizona announced the plea and identified Callella as a California man who admitted to two federal harassment counts tied to ransom communications.
According to prosecutors, Callella admitted he called and sent text messages to a missing person’s family on February 4, 2026, asking about a bitcoin transfer.
He also acknowledged that he already knew an earlier ransom demand had been made. The government says his goal was to harass the family by seeking information about the disappearance investigation.
Sentencing is scheduled for September 10, 2026, before U.S. District Judge John C. Hinderaker, and each count carries a maximum of two years in prison, a $250,000 fine, or both, plus one year of supervised release.
The FBI Phoenix Division’s Tucson office handled the investigation, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Tucson is prosecuting the case.
KGUN 9 reported from Tucson Federal Court that Callella’s plea deal calls for five years of probation on each count, served at the same time for five years total after Thursday’s hearing.
Formal sentencing still comes in September, and the report said the court ordered Callella directly into residential drug treatment after the hearing.
Federal charges said he sent two texts and made a phone call shortly after the Guthrie family posted a public message asking the kidnappers to contact them.
KGUN 9 also reported the texts had no real connection to the bitcoin ransom note that media outlets received after Nancy Guthrie disappeared. The station said agents traced the hidden-number trail back to Callella anyway.
Derrick Callella pleaded guilty to two counts of telephonic harassment and faces five years of probation. https://t.co/dhMlzQGSZx
— KGUN 9 (@kgun9) July 2, 2026
KOLD reported that Callella had originally faced charges of transmitting a demand for ransom in interstate commerce and using a telecommunications device with intent to abuse, threaten, or harass.
The local outlet reported that Callella texted Nancy Guthrie’s daughter Annie and son-in-law Tommaso Cioni, using a VOIP phone line connected to the messages.
The messages came moments after the family released its first public video plea asking for proof of life from whoever had her.
Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos warned that fraudulent notes slow the investigation, divert attention, and exploit the Guthrie family. His message to anyone thinking about sending another fake note was simple: law enforcement is tracing them, and arrests can follow.
That is the line this plea draws. The guilty plea addresses one alleged imposter demand, while the deeper mystery remains open.
AZFamily reported that the FBI has said some ransom notes in the case were illegitimate extortion attempts, while other ransom demands may still be legitimate and remain under investigation.
The FBI statement came as the case reached 151 days since Guthrie was reported missing from her Catalina Foothills home in Tucson.
AZFamily reported that the case is still being investigated as a kidnapping for ransom, with local authorities in the lead and the FBI continuing to assist. That keeps the ransom question active even after this guilty plea.
The outlet also reported that KOLD received two ransom notes early in the search, one on February 2 and another on February 6, and that those notes were turned over to the Pima County Sheriff’s Department and the FBI.
That context matters because Nancy Guthrie’s disappearance remains open. Prosecutors say Callella harassed the family around the ransom chaos, and he is not accused of taking her.
The woman at the center of this case is still missing.
The FBI is offering up to $100,000 for information leading to Guthrie’s location or to the arrest and conviction of anyone involved in her disappearance.
The FBI says Guthrie was last seen at her Catalina Foothills residence in Tucson on the evening of January 31, 2026.
She is considered a vulnerable adult who has difficulty walking, has a pacemaker, and needs daily medication for a heart condition.
The FBI says an armed individual appeared to tamper with Guthrie’s front-door camera the morning she vanished. The suspect is described as a male roughly 5 feet 9 inches to 5 feet 10 inches tall, with an average build, wearing a black 25-liter Ozark Trail Hiker Pack backpack.
Anyone with information can contact the FBI at 1-800-CALL-FBI or submit a tip online at tips.fbi.gov.
The plea brings accountability for one cruel episode. Nancy Guthrie is still missing, and the real case is still waiting for the lead that breaks it open.
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