With Nancy Guthrie’s surveillance footage going viral, professional explains best way to set up cameras

NEW HANOVER COUNTY, NC (WWAY)– Now more than a week of Nancy Guthrie going missing, surveillance footage finally shows up. The footage shows a masked man wearing gloves and carrying a backpack, approaching the steps of Guthrie’s home just before she disappeared.

Stephen Wheeler, with Home Security Systems, says he has seen all sorts of video surveillance, but not quite like this.

“What I see in the video is a very poor-quality video. I think they were having issues with the system,” said Wheeler. “If I understand correctly, the cameras that were put in there were not professionally installed.”

Wheeler is the president of Home Security Systems, and he says the business of cameras have changed drastically, with people now installing their own cameras with brands like Ring and Google Nest.

Wheeler says these small cameras might be cheaper, but sometimes not as efficient. Like the one Guthrie had, some of these cameras might not be able to retrieve footage if customers do not have certain subscriptions.

Arizona’s Pima County Sheriff’s Office said she did not have a subscription that would have saved the video. Investigators had to work with a tech company to try to recover the footage, causing delays in the investigation.

In a house that they recently installed cameras in; Wheeler describes best way to protect your home.

“They have 2 or 3 cameras placed about their house, watching critical areas. They have a doorbell camera, they have other cameras that look around the house, inside and out,” said Wheeler. “They want to be able to see what’s happening, so these cameras have analytics on them, and can notify them when there is activity through emails, texts, or through the app.”

Guthrie’s surveillance footage has now garnered the attention of many people, with many now calling Wheeler.

“In today’s world, our elderly population are getting older and living longer. Family members are very concerned about their loved ones. W seem to be getting more phone calls about, family members wanting to install a camera,” said Wheeler. “They want to be able to see and verify that mom, dad, uncle or brother is okay.”