A California man charged in connection with sending a fake ransom demand in the case of Nancy Guthrie’s disappearance made a court appearance in Arizona before being released from federal custody.
Derrick Callella, 42, of Hawthorne, Calif., was charged by the Justice Department with transmitting a demand for ransom in interstate commerce, and without disclosing his identity, utilizing a telecommunications device with intent to abuse, threaten, or harass a person. He made his first appearance at the federal courthouse in Tucson, Ariz., on Thursday, KOLD 13 News reported.
Callella allegedly sent the demands via two text messages to Guthrie’s family on Feb. 4 — her oldest daughter, Annie, and her son-in-law, Tommaso Cioni. He also allegedly made a nine-second phone call to a family member.
Per court records, Callella allegedly used a VOIP (internet) phone line to send a message reading, “Did you get the bitcoin were [sic] waiting on our end for the transaction.”
