Blood was found inside the home of Savannah Guthrie's abducted mother Nancy after a kidnapper forced their way into the property, police sources say.
The disturbing new details were shared with the Los Angeles Times after the Daily Mail revealed how the 84-year-old had been abducted from her bed late Saturday or early Sunday.
An exhaustive hunt for Nancy continues, with Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos almost bursting into tears Monday night when asked if he thinks Nancy is still alive.
Nanos welled up after he was asked by AZFamily host Briana Whitney: 'Do you believe you are still looking for Nancy Guthrie alive at this point? That she could be held somewhere? And if so, do you believe that is local in the Tucson area, or that she's been taken somewhere?'
Nanos stumbled on his words as he said he and his deputies are 'just not going to give up hope' of finding Nancy - who was believed to have been snatched from her Arizona home on Sunday night.
Savannah, 54, flew to Arizona shortly after learning that Nancy had been abducted - a moment CNN reported was 'the worst phone call of her life.'
DNA tests have been performed but the results could take another few days.
Sheriff Nanos said they did not believe Nancy had been targeted because of her rich and famous daughter, but said he could not rule out that line of inquiry.
Meanwhile, Savannah is said to be traveling with a security team. She has dropped out of hosting the Milan Winter Olympics, which begins on Wednesday.
Today - the show she hosts - led with Nancy's abduction for the second day in a row on Tuesday and shared Guthrie's request for 'prayers.'
Authorities investigating the disappearance of Guthrie's mother Nancy discovered blood inside her $1 million Arizona home (pictured), sources say
In an interview Tuesday, Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos grew emotional as he said he 'hopes' Nancy is still alive
With Savannah off the air while she assists with the search, her network NBC led its nightly news on Monday night with tributes to the longtime star and her mother.
Anchor Tom Llamas said the news 'hits too close to home for our newsroom', and said the broadcaster's 'thoughts and prayers are with Savannah and her family right now.'
'The sheriff there tells me she was taken against her will from her bed in the middle of the night,' Llamas added.
An NBC source told CNN that Savannah had spent much of the last week with her children because she had been preparing for a stint in Europe to cover the Winter Olympics.
They said that she will no longer help with the opening ceremony telecast, and is likely to remain off the air for some time while the investigation continues.
On Tuesday, Nanos announced that a $2,500 reward was being issued for information leading to an arrest in Nancy Guthrie's disappearance.
Nanos stated that he believes foul play was involved in her disappearance, and said it appeared that Nany may have been abducted from her home against her will, reports KVOA.
The sheriff said investigators have not yet ruled out the potential abduction being a 'targeted' incident, but said evidence does not yet support that conclusion either.
'Nothing that we see is leading us that way, but we'll never dismiss anything. We'll continue to look at everything, and we'll just keep moving forward with it,' he said.
Officials said Nancy is frail and is without daily medications she needs to survive.
On Monday, Nanos appealed to a potential abductor while speaking with NBC.
'Just call us. Let her go. Just call us. The family will tell you, there's no questions asked here,' he said.