Southwest
Arizona election worker accused of stealing security device was hired despite felony theft arrest months prior
A temporary election worker in Maricopa County, Arizona, who was captured on surveillance video allegedly stealing a “digital magnetic key” from a tabulation center last week, had been arrested just months ago for allegedly removing a total of $1,800 in cash from the register while working as a cashier at a nearby grocery store, according to court documents obtained by Fox News Digital.
The development raises concerns about the vetting of election staffers ahead of the 2024 race.
At a news conference on Tuesday, Maricopa County Supervisor Bill Gates, when pressed by a reporter, admitted that the suspect, 27-year-old Walter Ringfield, was in a felony diversion program – information that did not come up during a criminal background check conducted before he was hired as a temporary election worker.
“We’re not going to get into the specifics of this case at this point, but we do, for all of our temporary employees, and he was a temporary employee in elections, we do a criminal background check. And when we did that criminal background check, we did not find this. He was on diversion,” Gates said. “It takes 2-3,000 temporary employees to run an election in Maricopa County. So security is very important.”
ARIZONA ELECTION WORKER ARRESTED FOR ALLEGEDLY STEALING SECURITY DEVICE FROM BALLOT TABULATION CENTER
Walter Ringfield was arrested on suspicion of theft Friday. (Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office)
Ringfield, of Phoenix, had been arrested on Sept. 30, 2023, at Frys Food & Drug, a grocery store chain, located on North 18th Avenue in Phoenix for theft, according to a probable cause statement obtained by Fox News Digital. The evening before, Ringfield was working at cashier register 9, and afterward management noticed more than $1,800 was missing from Ringfield’s shift, the document says.
“There was an investigation with loss prevention and management to review security footage which captured Walter taking customers’ cash at the register and [pocketing] it over several transactions amounting to over 1800 dollars,” the document says. Ringfield was brought for questioning with management and loss prevention and “later admitted to the theft and had all the cash which stolen from yesterday in his front pant pocket.”
“When asked by the officer whose money this was he stated it was Frys cash, and he was returning it,” the document says. “During Miranda Rights, Walter stated he has been working for Frys for 2 weeks. He was struggling to pay rent and could not pay bills. Walter admitted he took the money from the register. Walter was subsequently booked into jail for his listed charge. Frys desired prosecution.”
In the section asking whether the defendant serviced in the U.S. military, the document is checked “yes,” and under branches served in, indicated the U.S. Navy.
The document also lists a prior arrest for disorderly conduct and fighting. It says Ringfield is not currently on active duty, is not homeless and is not in need of the court to provide an interpreter.
Under place of the birth, it indicates U.S., and cites present U.S. citizenship.
Fox News Digital reached out to the Navy’s personnel office seeking more information on Ringfield’s military service but did not immediately hear back.
Maricopa County Supervisor Bill Gates holds up a black security key as an example of one stolen from the tabulation center. (KSAZ)
The case was opened by the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office 10 months ago.
Ringfield was arrested again on Friday in connection to the theft of a security fob at the Maricopa County Elections building in Phoenix, authorities said.
At Tuesday’s press conference, Maricopa County Sheriff Russ Skinner was asked if authorities had a reason to believe the theft was “politically motivated.” He said he could not speculate at this time, explaining that investigators “are still combing through a lot of digital evidence that were taken at the scene and going through items that were taken in the search warrant.”
“We don’t have any indication at this point, but we’re not ruling it out. And we’re going to leave no stone unturned. We’re going to make sure that we do evaluate all of the evidence that was out there and ensure that we follow up on anything that may be potentially directing us somewhere else or other actors that may be involved in this. But at this point, we do not have anything that indicates that.”
Walter Ringfield was caught on footage allegedly taking security equipment from the Maricopa County Tabulation and Election Center in Arizona on June 20, 2024. (Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office)
Maricopa County, which has had repeated tabulation equipment concerns, has become a hotbed of election-fraud claims in recent years, especially during the last presidential election in 2020.
Gates said they do not expect the incident to “have any impact whatsoever on the primary,” which is scheduled for July 30.
“The security fobs are used in conjunction with special secure tablets during the election,” the probable cause document says. “Because the security fob was removed from the secure facility, all the security fobs and secure tablets will need to be reprogrammed to be secure for the upcoming election. The director of the facility states that the estimated cost of the reprogramming would be greater than $19,000, and the secure operation of the facility is greatly impeded until the reprogramming is complete.”
Gates said all the tabulators have been reprogrammed, and the county conducted a logic and accuracy test and notified the political parties.
ELECTION OFFICIALS IN ALL 50 STATES URGED TO SEEK INFO FROM BIDEN ADMIN TO PREVENT NONCITIZENS FROM VOTING
Walter Ringfield was caught on footage taking a magnetic security key from the Maricopa County Tabulation and Election Center in Arizona on June 20, 2024. (Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office)
On Thursday, Ringfield was captured on surveillance cameras walking past a desk and multiple tabulators, the document says. Ringfield stops at the desk and grabs a “red scrunchy wrist lanyard with a security fob and keys attached” and continues walking, the document says. He then allegedly puts the security fob and lanyard into the right pocket of his shorts and “immediately after, he raises his arms to stretch.”
The document says Ringfield was confronted by his employer about the theft and “Walter told them he did not take the fob and lanyard.”
Ringfield told the employer, “if he did mistakenly take it, it may be inside his car because it wasn’t in his pocket when he got home,” the document says. Ringfield allowed his employer and security to look inside his vehicle, and they observed “a red plastic lanyard on the center console shifter, and a plastic tag identifying the station one which matched the missing keys,” but the fob was not located at that time.
The next day, detectives went to Ringfield’s residence in Phoenix and arrested him while he was outside.
Walter Ringfield was captured on security footage walking past desks at the Maricopa County Tabulation and Election Center in Arizona on June 20, 2024. (Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office)
“Detectives were able to see through the window into Walter’s Acura which was backed into the driveway and could see a red plastic item on the shifter consistent with what the employer and security observed,” the document says. “Walter was interviewed post Miranda and said he worked at MCTEC and was fired because they thought he stole something.”
Walter admitted to detectives that he took the fob but claimed he had it only for approximately 20 minutes and then gave it back.
Ringfield claimed he took the fob because his job was temporary, and he was trying to make it permanent, so he wanted to clean up.
Detectives executed a search warrant at Ringfield’s residence and the security fob was located inside the master bedroom on top of a dresser, the document says.
Unlike the one from months ago, the probable cause document in last week’s arrest ticks the “unknown” box in the section asking if the defendant served in the U.S. military.
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Southwest
Nancy Guthrie’s abductor may have returned to the crime scene, left critical clues at tribute: expert
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TUCSON, Ariz. — As a growing memorial outside Nancy Guthrie’s Tucson-area home continues to draw visitors, new questions are emerging about whether investigators are monitoring the site.
Guthrie, the 84-year-old mother of “Today” co-host Savannah Guthrie, is believed to have been abducted from her home in the early hours of Feb. 1.
“They could [have eyes on the memorial], we’re just not seeing it,” Betsy Brantner Smith, spokesperson for the National Police Association and a retired police sergeant, tells Fox News Digital. “They could be keeping track of it, but we’re not seeing the cameras.”
Nancy Guthrie was abducted from her Tucson home on Feb. 1. (Getty Images)
Yellow flowers, handwritten notes, artwork and even an open letter addressed to the “kidnapper” have been left at the makeshift tribute in front of her home.
While the memorial grows, however, visible law enforcement presence has significantly dropped.
“Detectives are reviewing all viable leads in this case,” a spokesperson for the Pima County Sheriff’s Department told Fox News Digital. “We do not speak to specifics, as this is still an ongoing investigation.”
Authorities have not publicly identified a suspect, vehicle or any persons of interest.
MULTIPLE SUSPECTS ARE POSSIBLE IN NANCY GUTHRIE’S ABDUCTION
Haunting Nest doorbell camera video shows a masked man on Nancy Guthrie’s front steps around the time of her abduction. He is described as being of average height and build and was wearing a black Ozark Trail backpack.
“In this type of situation where you have the potential for a suspect having done this because he or she is somehow obsessed with Savannah Guthrie or seeing Nancy featured on the ‘Today’ show multiple times… someone who is obsessed with notoriety, celebrity — there’s a lot of pathology involved in that,” Brantner Smith said.
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A member of the Pima County Sheriff’s office was seen outside of Nancy Guthrie’s home, Monday, Feb. 9, 2026 in Tucson, Ariz. (Ty O’Neil/AP Photo; Nathan Congleton/NBC via Getty Images)
“Potentially, that is the type of person that could come back to the memorial, look at the memorial, even take photos of the memorial and add to the memorial themselves.”
As to why there’s been an alleged lack of law enforcement presence monitoring the site, Brantner Smith pointed to one likely scenario.
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“It may be because they have solid suspects, and they just haven’t released that information to the public,” she said.
It’s not uncommon for an offender to return to the crime scene, she added.
A growing vigil in the morning light under cloudy skies is seen at Nancy Guthrie’s home on February 13, 2026, in Tucson, Arizona. (Ty O’Neil/AP Photo)
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“Sometimes the offender will come back to the scene of the crime. So, in that vein, they would come to the memorial, and they may have left their own note, their own flowers,” she said.
Often, it’s a mark of their arrogance, she told Fox News Digital.
“I am guessing that the suspect or suspects who did this are frankly taking great pride in the fact that so far they’ve got away with it,” she added. “Coming back can also be a way to bring back that rush that they had when they originally committed the crime.”
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Such behavior happens frequently in arson cases, she said.
Deputies examine a flyer taped to Nancy Guthrie’s mailbox on Sunday, Feb. 22, 2026. They were called to the scene after volunteer searchers and several streamers walked onto Guthrie’s property with a shovel. (Michael Ruiz/Fox News Digital)
“But it’s also not untypical in a homicide case or, in this case, a missing person,” she continued. “We’ve got to look at the psychology of people who do this kind of stuff. They also may want to come back to see what kind of people are leaving notes and leaving flowers.”
For that reason, she said, investigators should be reading the notes to develop potential leads.
“They’re coming back to see the impact that they had on this neighborhood and on this family,” she said. “And the rest of us would view that as very sick, but law enforcement has to view that as a way to collect clues.”
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Savannah, her sister Annie, and brother-in-law, Tommaso Cioni, placed flowers at the growing tribute near the foot of Nancy’s driveway on Monday in a somber visit to the crime scene.
Annie Guthrie, her husband Tommaso Cioni, and Savannah Guthrie at their missing mother Nancy Guthrie’s home on Monday, March 2, in Tucson, Arizona. (Fox News)
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A combined reward for information that leads to Nancy’s recovery from the FBI, local authorities and the Guthrie family stands at over $1 million. It has not yet been claimed.
Savannah is asking anyone with information to dial 1-800-CALL-FBI.
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U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, has endorsed Texas state Rep. Steve Toth, who is challenging incumbent U.S. Rep. Dan Crenshaw in the Lone Star State’s 2nd Congressional District Republican primary.
“I am proud to endorse @SteveTothTX for Congress in Texas’s 2nd Congressional District. Steve faithfully served the people of Texas in the Texas House of Representatives, championing our Texas values of liberty, limited government, and constitutional governance,” Cruz said in a post on X.
“Steve is an unwavering fighter for school choice, fiscal responsibility, and the next generation of Americans. Washington needs bold leadership and representatives who will stand up for Texans at every turn,” Cruz continued.
Republican U.S. Rep. Dan Crenshaw speaks during a showcase hosted by TerraFlow in Houston Thursday, Aug. 14, 2025. (Melissa Phillip/Houston Chronicle via Getty Images)
“Steve has the experience, the courage, and the conviction to do just that. I’m honored to support his campaign and urge voters in Texas’s 2nd Congressional District to join me in electing Steve Toth to Congress,” he added.
While President Donald Trump has not made an endorsement in the race, he previously backed Toth for Texas state House in 2022 and 2024.
EXCLUSIVE: DAN CRENSHAW’S GOP CHALLENGER SAYS ‘DAYS IN CONGRESS ARE NUMBERED’ AS RACE HEATS UP
Texas House incumbent Rep. Steve Toth gives a brief statement before the start of a gubernatorial debate held at Grace Woodlands Church and put on by the True Texas Project on Monday, Jan. 10, 2022 in Spring, Texas. (Michael Wyke/Houston Chronicle via Getty Images)
“State Representative Steve Toth is doing a fantastic job representing Texas State House District 15. A Small Business Owner and an Ordained Minister, Steve is fighting tirelessly to Secure our Elections, Grow the Economy, Eliminate Needless Regulations, Strengthen the Border, Support our Great Military/Veterans, and Protect and Defend our under siege Second Amendment. Steve Toth has my Complete and Total Endorsement!” Trump wrote in a 2024 Truth Social post.
The last day of early voting for Texas’ March 3 primary contests is Friday, according to the Texas Secretary of State website.
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Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, arrives for the cloture vote on the government funding bill in the U.S. Capitol on Thursday, Jan. 29, 2026. (Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)
Crenshaw has served in Congress since early 2019.
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EXCLUSIVE: TUCSON, Ariz. — A resident in the Catalina Foothills neighborhood has a street-facing Ring camera that caught 12 cars passing by on the morning of Nancy Guthrie’s suspected abduction.
The recordings took place between midnight and 6 a.m. on Feb. 1, and some of the activity occurred near the 2:30 a.m. mark, which is around the time authorities said the 84-year-old Guthrie’s pacemaker device last synced with her iPhone.
The homeowners, Elias and Danielle Stratigouleas, told Fox News Digital that police had not canvassed their neighborhood in the 25 days since Guthrie is believed to have been taken from her bed in a home invasion kidnapping. The FBI and Pima County Sheriff’s Department have been alerted to the video. It was not immediately clear whether the video is of any use to the investigation or whether the vehicle had ever been on Guthrie’s street.
Guthrie is the mother of “Today” co-host Savannah Guthrie, a Tucson native.
Left: A still image from Ring camera video shows a vehicle passing a home near Nancy Guthrie’s on Feb. 1, the morning she is believed to have been abducted. Right: Nancy in an undated family photo. (Courtesy of Elias and Danielle Stratigouleas, Courtesy of NBC)
The Stratigouleas house is on a back road that leads out of Guthrie’s neighborhood, avoiding major intersections. And they live about 2.5 miles away from the crime scene, which is outside the 2-mile radius of neighbors who received a Ring alert asking for video taken from Jan. 1 to Feb. 2.
Their house is roughly a seven-minute drive from Guthrie’s address, according to Google Maps. One of their videos was recorded at around 2:36 a.m. on Feb. 1, which is roughly eight minutes after Guthrie’s pacemaker last synced with her iPhone, according to the sheriff’s timeline.
WATCH: Ring video shows vehicles on outskirts of Nancy Guthrie’s neighborhood morning of abduction
Danielle Stratigouleas said the number of cars passing that night was not unusual, but she and a friend found it “odd” that no one from law enforcement had visited her neighborhood.
NANCY GUTHRIE SUSPECT’S DIGITAL ‘BLACKOUT’ MAY BE KEY TO CASE, SAYS EXPERT WHO PROBED KOHBERGER PHONE
A map details the neighborhood surrounding Nancy Guthrie’s home on Camino Escalante in Tucson, Arizona, and a secondary route through the Catalina Foothills down Camino Real leading to East River Road. (Fox News)
A Ring camera image taken from video shows a vehicle driving south on Camino Real at 2:36 a.m. on Feb. 1, the morning Nancy Guthrie is believed to have been abducted from a home nearby in the Catalina Foothills of Tucson, Arizona. (Courtesy of Elias and Danielle Stratigouleas)
The FBI and Pima County Sheriff’s Department have been alerted to the video. It was not immediately clear whether it is of any use to the investigation.
Retired NYPD detective and national security expert Pat Brosnan reviewed the video with his team. He tells Fox News Digital they believe the vehicle seen at 2:36 a.m. is a Kia Soul, based on its slanted roof, window design and rear-quarter glass. He also noted the vertical brake lights.
The rewards are still outstanding, and anyone with information they think may be relevant is asked to contact the FBI at 1-800-CALL-FBI.
The route itself had been flagged to Fox News Digital by another neighbor — who said she also saw a suspicious man walking in the area on Feb. 2, around the corner from what appeared to be an abandoned car. The young mother asked not to be named due to concerns for her children’s safety amid the unsolved kidnapping investigation.
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WATCH: Path out of Nancy Guthrie’s neighborhood avoids major intersections
She described him as about 5 feet, 9 inches tall, Hispanic, with a close-trimmed beard and wearing a silver bracelet. He was smoking a cigarette near the intersection of Camino Juan Paisano and Piedra Seca, which is between Camino Real and Guthrie’s home.
The Pima County Sheriff’s Department did not return multiple phone calls and emails about the man or the vehicle, a dark red Honda SUV that the neighbor said was moved after three days.
A neighbor of Nancy Guthrie’s spotted this dark red Honda near Camino Real on Feb. 2, the day after Nancy Guthrie’s suspected abduction nearby. She told Fox News Digital that it remained in place for a couple of days after deputies examined it. (Obtained by Fox News Digital)
A neighbor of Nancy Guthrie’s spotted this dark red Honda near Camino Real on Feb. 2, the day after Nancy Guthrie’s suspected abduction nearby. She told Fox News Digital it remained in place for about three days before it was moved. (Obtained by Fox News Digital)
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Another unidentified man was spotted in mid-January, according to neighbor Aldine Meister.
“He didn’t have your typical walking gear on, and he had his hat pulled really far over his eyes,” she told Fox News Digital.
She said she saw the man walking in the neighborhood, near an intersection leading to Guthrie’s home — and hadn’t encountered him before or after.
Deputies examine a flyer taped to Nancy Guthrie’s mailbox on Sunday, Feb. 22, 2026. (Michael Ruiz/Fox News Digital)
“He was kind of younger, and he just didn’t look like he was going out for a walk,” she added.
She mentioned it to her husband but did not report it to investigators until after Guthrie’s disappearance.
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FBI agents canvass homes near Nancy Guthrie’s home in Tucson, Friday, Feb. 6, 2026. (Kat Ramirez for Fox News Digital)
Danielle Stratigouleas told Fox News Digital that she did see deputies searching what locals call a wash, a common terrain feature in the region, near her office, which is on Skyline Drive, another main road that borders Guthrie’s development.
North Campbell, which was extensively searched by authorities and volunteers, connects to both main arteries. Camino Real connects only to East River Road.
“I think it sounds smart, and if they even sort of knew the area or actually cased the area beforehand, that road behind Camino Real called Camino Escuela would be an even better idea,” she told Fox News Digital. “There’s never anybody on it, and never a police car to be seen.”
Fox News Digital approached five other homes with street-facing cameras on Camino Real. Three of the homeowners said they had not been visited by law enforcement, either. No one answered the door at the other two.
None said they had any notable video from Feb. 1.
Campbell also runs past the University of Arizona and is a much busier road, she said.
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An undated photo of Nancy Guthrie and Savannah Guthrie was provided by NBC in response to the disappearance of the 84-year-old. (Courtesy of NBC)
“It’s always buzzing even on a Saturday night,” she added. “Camino La Brinca and Camino Piedra Seca also lead to Camino Real, and they’re a good way to get from Camino Zorella.”
The residents said they’re hoping more people outside the radius will check their cameras and submit anything that could help the FBI.
Guthrie is believed to have been forcibly abducted from her home on North Camino Escalante, according to the Pima County Sheriff’s Department.
In more than three weeks, police have not publicly identified any suspects, persons of interest or vehicles connected to the case. They briefly detained but later released several people and have towed multiple vehicles, including those belonging to family members and the detainees.
No one has been charged with a crime as of Thursday morning, however.
Exterior view of the front entrance of Nancy Guthrie’s home in Tucson, Arizona, Tuesday, February 3, 2026. (Derek Shook for Fox News Digital)
The FBI and Google teamed up to recover doorbell camera footage even though her Nest device is physically unaccounted for, and she did not have a cloud subscription.
FBI Director Kash Patel released still images and video on Feb. 10.
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The video shows a masked individual with gloves on, prowling on her front porch.
These two images were released by the FBI, recovered from Nancy Guthrie’s Nest doorbell camera. It’s unclear whether they show the same person. (FBI)
According to two sources with knowledge of the investigation, one of the doorbell images was taken on a different date than the others. It shows an individual who may be the same masked intruder at Guthrie’s doorstep, without an Ozark Trail backpack or holstered pistol.
Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos has called the timeline surrounding the images speculation.
Savannah Guthrie is asking anyone with information in the case to dial 1-800-CALL-FBI or contact her directly.
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