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FBI Analyzes DNA From Glove Found 2 Miles From Guthrie Home; European Probe: Russian Govt Killed Alexei Navalny With Frog Toxin. Aired 11-11:30a ET

Aired February 16, 2026 - 11:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

COY WIRE, CNN SPORTS ANCHOR: A former e-sports captain and an absolutely captivating curling character at these Winter Games, definitely one to watch when Team USA takes on China tomorrow in the preliminaries.

[11:00:12]

PAMELA BROWN, CNN ANCHOR: All right, we'll be watching, Coy Wire. Thanks so much. You, my friend, have the best assignment. I am very envious of you, although I'm sure it's gold.

All right, the next hour of The Situation Room starts right now.

And happening now, a new focus on a glove is providing hope in the search for Nancy Guthrie as the investigation enters its third week. Plus, we're joined by the director of the Academy Award winning documentary, "Navalny," two years after the Russian opposition leader's death, that is now being linked to a toxin from poison dart frogs.

Welcome to our viewers in the United States and around the world. I'm Pamela Brown. Wolf Blitzer is off and you're in The Situation Room.

And we begin this hour with a Nancy Guthrie case and a key development that could provide investigators with critical new information. As early as today, the FBI could receive results from DNA testing of a glove found about two miles from Guthrie's home.

The FBI says the glove appears to match what the person seen on her doorbell camera right here was wearing the night Guthrie was abducted. And the DNA is now being analyzed in hopes of identifying a suspect. As the search enters a third week, NBC's Savannah Guthrie has posted a new appeal on social media. Here is her entire message.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SAVANNAH GUTHRIE, NANCY GUTHRIE'S DAUGHTER: I wanted to come on and it's been two weeks since our mom was taken and I just wanted to come on and say that we still have hope. And we still believe. And I wanted to say to whoever has her or knows where she is, that it's never too late. And you're not lost or alone. And it is never too late to do the right thing. And we are here. And we believe. And we believe in the essential goodness of every human being. And it's never too late. (END VIDEO CLIP)

BROWN: Just so agonizing. Let's go live now to CNN's Ed Lavandera in Tucson. What more are you learning this morning, Ed?

ED LAVANDERA, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, as this investigation enters its third week, I want to touch on the DNA testing that you were mentioning there, Pamela. So investigators, FBI put out a statement yesterday saying that there had been more than a dozen gloves found in the area.

And that one of those gloves matches the description of the gloves that were used by the suspect in that video from the doorbell camera. And in that glove, they have DNA that they are testing. Now, why that's important is because on Friday, the sheriff told us that DNA was recovered here on the property of Nancy Guthrie's home.

And it's of an unknown person. So if they can get those two DNA samples to match, then that becomes a much stronger lead. From there, investigators would put that DNA sample through various databases and try to come up with a match. It's not guaranteed that it's going to lead you to someone specific. That person's DNA would already have to be in these databases. So that is the series of steps that investigators, we understand, are going through right now.

Hopefully, at some point today, there would be some clarity on that. We don't know for sure if that will happen or if it will be shared with us ultimately. But we will continue to monitor that. The other thing, I think, Pamela, that is interesting to kind of monitor is that, you know, the fact that investigators were able to go with the help of private companies, be able to resurrect the video that has provided the images of the suspect and the backpack and everything that happened there, that was a painstaking process that took about 10 days for those entities to resurrect that video.

Remember, we have been told that there are multiple cameras on the property. So the sheriff told me on Friday, Pamela, that they are going through the effort of also trying to resurrect the videos off of that. So there could be a scenario here where perhaps those cameras caught something else, maybe a car, maybe a clearer picture of the suspect inside the home or out around the property, something that could continue to help the public identify this person.

[11:05:00]

So we will try to monitor that as well in hopes that that kind of key evidence could come into play here and get into investigators' hands as well. Pamela?

BROWN: All right. We'll be tracking that for sure. Ed Lavandera, thank you so much.

Let's continue this conversation. John Miller is CNN's chief law enforcement and intelligence analyst, and Joshua Skule is a former FBI executive assistant director for intelligence. So in this latest video from Savannah Guthrie, she is appealing directly to her mother's kidnappers, saying, "It's never too late to do the right thing." John, what is the family hoping to achieve with this direct appeal?

JOHN MILLER, CNN CHIEF LAW ENFORCEMENT AND INTELLIGENCE ANALYST: They are trying to appeal directly to the kidnappers, but a broader appeal. I believe that part of their message is, sure, if anybody saw anything, tell us. We've heard that a number of times. And that goes without saying. If you're the kidnapper, we believe she's still out there. We want her back in any condition that she may be in physically.

But I think it's also inherent in that message that she's appealing to the good in people because she understands that someone out there who may not be the kidnapper also may know that could be a wife, a spouse, a friend, someone who is associated with the kidnapper, maybe had knowledge of the plot or saw something. She is. And when you see the video, she is clearly exhausted. She's been under so much pressure. But she's saying there's someone out there who has the key to us getting our mother back.

BROWN: Yes. I mean, she's been living this nightmare along with her family for three weeks now and like nothing else matters, right, at that point, you were just like bare bones. It is so raw, so much emotion. Josh, at this point, how unusual is it that as far as we know, there is still no direct communication between the family and the alleged kidnapper?

JOSHUA SKULE, PRESIDENT, BOW WAVE LLC: Well, for the family, it's arduous. As we've seen in the video, the toll of this is clearly taking on Savannah. You know, this complicates the investigative theory. Clearly, the search area has expanded. I mean, a two mile radius is an expansive, expansive search for investigators to go through. For what we know, hopefully those are leads that are directing them into those areas. But not, you know, with the investigative theory of this being a kidnapping on one theory.

You would think the kidnappers would want their money. And they would -- that's why they did this. On other theories, I think it's high risk to take the victim away from the house when there's other things you can do, unless you had identified them.

BROWN: Right. I just want to follow up on that because it is very rare to kidnap an oxygen area, right? She was in her 80s. And at this point, there just is no indication about the ransom or any communication with the alleged kidnappers. I mean, just to follow up with you, Josh, what does that tell you?

SKULE: Well, I mean, it's baffling, frankly, and I think this is one of the things that is frustrating investigators so much as they cannot nail down a theory. Because in the kidnappings I've worked, folks wanted their money. That's what they wanted. And so they eventually there would be a greater dial -- a greater amount of dialogue. And here we're just not seeing it. And now they could have panicked.

There's a myriad of reasons that they're no longer communicating or have not sent in a follow up since last week. But right now, you know, it's got -- it's taxing on the investigators. It's clearly taxing on the family, but yet they have to persist. And now what she's pleading for is additional leads to be coming in. She wants to make sure that anybody, as John said, anybody that has any inkling of something that might have happened, calls law enforcement. And these pleas will continue until Nancy is found.

BROWN: John, how big of a break would it be if the DNA on this glove found near Nancy Guthrie's home matches the DNA recovered inside Nancy Guthrie's home? I know that there is a database that can be used to see if it matches anyone who has had prior law enforcement interactions.

MILLER: It could be a huge break. And there's a couple of reasons why. Number one, if the DNA in the glove from this unknown contributor matches the DNA in the house from the unknown contributor, then that gives you a really strong piece of evidence saying the person who wore this glove, which was found however many miles away, was also the person who was in that house.

The fact that it might not show up in CODIS, the database that includes criminal records, match the DNA is one thing. But there are many ways you may develop a subject in this case, a suspect. And if you have a suspect who matches the DNA in that glove and the DNA in that house, that is going to be incredibly strong evidence.

[11:10:03]

BROWN: Right. Because as I recall, in the Bryan Kohberger case from Idaho, when he killed those Idaho students, they had DNA. He wasn't in the system. They were able to trace it by connecting it to his dad. I mean, there are other things you can do if you get that DNA and it's that person is not in the CODIS system, right, John?

MILLER: And that's right. In the in the Idaho murderers case, there was a trace amount of DNA on a leather knife sheath found at the scene in the bed of one of the victims. And that was put into a familial database because the subject didn't show up. But that database could reveal a relative of the subject. And when they did the surveillance at the house and they saw the subject, the suspect in that case, Kohberger, allegedly putting his trash in the next door neighbor's trash cans, they collected that random DNA and came up with DNA that matched his father.

Those were those little bits of evidence that took the case from just an inkling of suspicion to over the top that we have the right person. That's the kind of thing that could happen here. It just requires a lot of work and some luck.

BROWN: Yes. All right, John Miller, Joshua Skule, thank you so much. And if you have any information that could help investigators, please call the numbers on your screen. The FBI tip line is 1-800-CALL-FBI. And the Pima County Sheriff's Department is at 520-351-4900.

Still ahead here in Situation Room, no end in sight to the partial government shutdown as Democrats stand by their demands on DHS funding. So what will it actually take to get a deal done? Republican Congressman Carlos Jimenez joins us. And a deadly toxin from South American poison dart frogs. European nations revealing stunning new details about how Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny was killed, as supporters around the world mark two years since his death. You're in The Situation Room and we'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[11:16:34]

BROWN: Happening now, a memorial event is set to get underway shortly in Paris for Alexei Navalny on the second anniversary of his death in a Russian prison. Over the weekend, five European nations released their results of samples taken from the Kremlin critic's body. They found he was killed with a toxin from a South American poison dart frog. And they pointed the finger at the Kremlin, saying, "The Russian state had the means, motive, and opportunity to administer this poison." Navalny's death triggered international outrage, and Navalny was the focus of this Oscar-winning documentary. Have a look.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I was banned from everything and blacklisted. But as I became more and more famous, I was totally sure that it would be problematic for them to kill me. And boy, were you wrong. Yes, I was very wrong.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BROWN: That clip from CNN Films. And with us now is Daniel Roher, who directed the documentary. Daniel, nice to see you. So Alexei Navalny's widow spoke out this weekend at the same global security summit where she announced his death two years ago. And here's what she said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

YULIA NAVALNAYA, WIDOW OF ALEXEI NAVALNY: It's hard for me to find the right words. Two years ago, I was here in Munich. I keep -- it was the most horrible day in my life. I came to the stage and I said that my husband, Alexei Navalny, was poisoned. What could else happen with Putin's number one enemy in Russian prison? Now it's not just words. It's scientific proof that my husband, Alexei Navalny, was poisoned and killed by Russian government and by Vladimir Putin in Russian prison.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BROWN: Daniel, what's your reaction to her words?

DANIEL ROHER, DIRECTOR, "NAVALNY": Well, Pamela, it's obviously heartbreaking. I think, you know, I share Yulia's loss for words. It's hard to know what to say, what to think. I was unsurprised when this confirmation came down from all these different countries. We knew that the Russian government murdered Alexei. I didn't need this confirmation to know it for sure. But obviously, it's very painful and it's very difficult. BROWN: Secretary of State Marco Rubio addressed this report while he was at the Munich summit this weekend. And he called it a troubling report, but there was no strong condemnation. What do you make of that?

ROHER: Well, Marco Rubio and this entire administration are not people who have much morality left. So I'm not surprised that Marco Rubio does not know the adequate language to describe this report. Vladimir Putin's greatest gift he's ever received in his life is Donald Trump and his administration. And so I have no hope that the administration will do the right thing when it comes to supporting Ukraine and combating Putin's aggression.

BROWN: Why do you say that he's the greatest gift, this administration is the greatest gift to Putin?

ROHER: Well, I mean, Donald Trump has done more to empower Vladimir Putin and his aggression than any other person on earth. The fact that Trump is so, so unsteady in his support for Ukraine is a phenomenal gift to the Russian president.

[11:20:11]

BROWN: I'm wondering, you know, as you look back and you look at all that Navalny did in the time since his death, has anyone stepped in to fill his role as a Putin critic?

ROHER: I can't think of anybody. There was nobody who had the singular ability at media and speaking and ability to galvanize young people that Alexei had. I'm encouraged by the thousands of people who are marching today in support of Alexei and his memory. But I don't think there is one figure who has come forward as, let's say, a replacement for Alexei.

But you have to have hope in dark times. I certainly do. I'm really inspired by the work that Yulia, Alexei's widow, is doing. We heard from her at the top of the segment. And it is my hope and wish that the forces that are against Vladimir Putin domestically in Russia continue to proliferate and continue to find the strength to continue and persevere amidst this very, very dark context.

BROWN: Given what happened to him in this report saying that he was poisoned with this toxin, are you concerned that there may not be someone else who is willing to come out and be the kind of Putin critic that we saw with Alexei, given everything that happened to him putting himself out there?

ROHER: Yes, of course. It's very scary to do what Alexei did. He paid for his courageousness with his life. It's very scary to do that job, to be the leader of the Russian opposition. But you know what? The arc of the moral universe is long. It does bend towards justice. I believe that. I have to believe that. We're going through a very dark time politically around the world. American leadership is vacated.

The post-war alliance that has proliferated security and safety in abundance is fragmented and broken. And so it is a very dark moment. We have to try and find hope where we can. That's what Alexei preached. That's what he represented. And it is my hope that someone else comes forward. Other groups come forward. Other people come forward to fight against this regime.

BROWN: We heard that clip a moment ago from your documentary that Navalny was wrong about the Kremlin's willingness to kill him. Looking back, do you think he would have served the cause better if he had just stayed in exile outside of Russia? Do you ever ponder that?

ROHER: Of course, Pamela. I think about this all the time. It's incredibly painful. Why did he go back? Everyone always asks me this. Why did Alexei go back? And ultimately, I don't know. I don't know if it was his hubris or this idea that he was the one who had to take on this regime. But at the end of the day, he's not here anymore. The regime is. And, you know, hindsight's 20-20. I miss him dearly. He was a wonderful man. He was a really fun guy. He was a great hang. He was curious. He was interested. He was engaged. He was a lovely father and a great family man. And the world is a darker place because Alexei Navalny is not in it.

BROWN: I'm curious where your initial impulse to direct this film came from. What was it about him and his story that drew you to exploring him and his case?

ROHER: Well, Alexei, interpersonally, is impossibly charismatic. He's a guy who lights up a room. He's curious. He was interested in filmmaking, which I love, and politics. And his story was just extraordinary. This was, you know, something straight out of a Bond film or a Jason Bourne film. This guy who survives an assassination attempt and then investigates his own poisoning and then exposes the criminals on camera, the would-be assassins, it was an extraordinary story framed through the lens of this extraordinary, heroic, historic figure who I had the unique privilege of getting to spend a couple months with.

And, you know, he's someone I think about all the time. My life so much was empowered because I met him. I miss him tremendously. I'm so sad for his wife and his beautiful children. It's just a profound tragedy.

[11:24:16]

BROWN: Daniel Rohrer, thank you. And our hearts go out to his family as well. You can see Daniel's Oscar award-winning film, "Navalny," streaming now on CNN All Access. And we'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BROWN: Happening now, the Department of Homeland Security is ensnared in a partial government shutdown as Democrats demand sweeping reforms to President Trump's immigration enforcement operations. Even though Congress failed to fund the agency before Friday's deadline, nearly all DHS workers will remain on the job. And the public, it's unlikely to notice major changes unless the shutdown, this partial one, is prolonged. Joining us now to discuss is Republican Congressman Carlos Gimenez of Florida. He serves on the House Homeland Security Committee. Congressman, thank you so much for coming on. So you have criticized in the past how this White House has conducted its immigration crackdown. Are you open to working with Democrats to reform ICE? Are any of the suggested reforms on the table something you'd be willing to negotiate on and be open to?

[11:29:58]

REP. CARLOS GIMENEZ (D-FL): Depends on the issue. I know that one of the things that they ask for is body cameras on all ICE agents. I have absolutely no problem with that. I think I've stated on this show that when I was mayor of Miami Dade County --