Nancy Guthrie's abductor may have returned to the crime scene, left critical clues at tribute: expert

TUCSON, Ariz. — As a growing memorial outsideNancy Guthrie's Tucson-area home continues to draw visitors, new questions are emerging about whether investigators are monitoring the site.

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Guthrie, the 84-year-old mother of "Today" co-hostSavannah 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."

Former Fbi Agent Offers New Theory About Nancy Guthrie's Disappearance: 'Personal Grievance'

Nancy Guthrie/Savannah Guthrie

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, visiblelaw enforcement presencehas significantly dropped.

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"Detectives are reviewing all viable leads in this case," a spokesperson for thePima County Sheriff's Departmenttold 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

HauntingNest doorbell cameravideo 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… someonewho is obsessed with notoriety, celebrity— there's a lot of pathology involved in that," Brantner Smith said.

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Law enforcement walking outside Nancy Guthrie's home split with Savannah and Nancy Guthrie

"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.

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It's not uncommon for an offender to return to the crime scene, she added.

Nancy Guthrie's home with a growing vigil of flowers and candles in the morning light.

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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 outside Nancy Guthrie's home

"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, andbrother-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.

The Guthrie family lays flowers at Nancy Guthrie's home

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A combined reward for information that leads to Nancy's recovery fromthe FBI, local authorities and the Guthrie family stands atover $1 million. It has not yet been claimed.

Savannah is asking anyone with information to dial 1-800-CALL-FBI.

Original article source:Nancy Guthrie's abductor may have returned to the crime scene, left critical clues at tribute: expert

Nancy Guthrie's abductor may have returned to the crime scene, left critical clues at tribute: expert

TUCSON, Ariz. — As a growing memorial outsideNancy Guthrie's Tucson-area home continues to draw visitors, new questio...
Man accused of plot to assassinate Trump says Iran pressured him

The allegation sounded like the stuff of spy movies: A Pakistani businessman trying to hire hit men, even handing them $5,000 in cash, to kill a U.S. politician on behalf of Iran 's powerful paramilitary Revolutionary Guard.

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It was true, and potential targets of the 2024 scheme included now-President Donald Trump, then-President Joe Biden and former presidential candidate and ex-U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley, the man told jurors at his attempted terrorism trial in New York on Wednesday. But he insisted his actions were driven by fear for loved ones in Iran, and he figured he'd be apprehended before anything came of the scheme.

"My family was under threat, and I had to do this," the defendant,Asif Merchant, testified through an Urdu interpreter. "I was not wanting to do this so willingly."

Merchant said he had anticipated getting arrested before anyone was killed, intended to cooperate with the U.S. government and had hoped that would help him get a green card.

U.S. authorities were, indeed, on to him - the supposed hit men he paid were actually undercover FBI agents - and he wasarrested on July 12, 2024, a day before an unrelatedattempt on Trump's lifein Butler, Pennsylvania.  During a search, investigators said they found a handwritten note that contained the codewords for the various aspects of the plot, CBS Newspreviously reported.

Merchant did sit for voluntary FBI interviews, but he ultimately ended up with a trial, not a cooperation deal.

"You traveled to the United States for the purpose of hiring Mafia members to kill a politician, correct?" Assistant U.S. Attorney Nina Gupta asked during her turn questioning Merchant Wednesday in a Brooklyn federal court.

"That's right," Merchant replied, his demeanor as matter-of-fact as his testimony was unusual.

The trial is unfolding amid the less than week-oldIran war, which killed Iranian Supreme LeaderAyatollah Ali Khameneiin a strike that Trump summed up as "I got him before he got me." Jurors are instructed to ignore news pertaining to the case.

The Iranian government has denied plotting to kill Trump or other U.S. officials.

Merchant, 47, had a roughly 20-year banking career in Pakistan before getting involved in an array of businesses: clothing, car sales, banana exports, insulation imports. He openly has two families, one in Pakistan and the other in Iran - where, he said, he was introduced around the end of 2022 to a Revolutionary Guard intelligence operative. They initially spoke about getting involved in a hawala, an informal money transfer system, Merchant said.

Merchant testified that his periodic visits to the U.S. for his garment business piqued the interest of his Revolutionary Guard contact, who trained him on countersurveillance techniques.

The U.S. deems the Revolutionary Guard a "foreign terrorist organization." Formally called the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, the force has been prominent in Iran under Khamenei.

Merchant said the handler told him to seek U.S. residents interested in working for Iran. Then came another assignment: Look for a criminal to arrange protests, steal things, do some money laundering, "and maybe have somebody murdered," Merchant recalled.

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"He did not tell me exactly who it is, but he told me - he named three people: Donald Trump, Joe Biden and Nikki Haley," he added.

In 2024, multiple sources familiar with the investigationtold CBS NewsMerchant planned to assassinate current and former government officials across the political spectrum.

Merchant allegedly sketched out the plot on a napkin inside his New York hotel room, prosecutors said, and told the individual "that there would be 'security all around' the person" they were planning to kill.

"No other option"

After U.S. immigration agents pulled Merchant aside at the Houston airport in April 2024, searched his possessions and asked about his travels to Iran, he concluded that he was under surveillance. But still he researched Trump rally locations, sketched out a plot for a shooting at a political rally, lined up the supposed hit men and scrambled together $5,000 from a cousin to pay them a "token of appreciation."

This image provided by the Justice Department, contained in the complaint supporting the arrest warrant, shows Asif Merchant.  / Credit: AP

He even reported back to his Revolutionary Guard contact, sending observations - fake, Merchant said - tucked into a book that he shipped to Iran through a series of intermediaries.

Merchant said he "had no other option" than to play along because the handler had indicated that he knew who Merchant's Iranian relatives were and where they lived.

In a court filing this week, prosecutors noted that Merchant didn't seek out law enforcement to help with his purported predicament before he was arrested. He testified that he couldn't turn to authorities because his handler had people watching him.

Prosecutors also said that in his FBI interviews, Merchant "neglected to mention any facts that could have supported" an argument that he acted under duress.

Merchant told jurors Wednesday that he didn't think agents would believe his story, because their questions suggested "they think that I'm some type of super-spy."

"And are you a super-spy?" defense lawyer Avraham Moskowitz asked.

"No," Merchant said. "Absolutely not."

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Key details on Iran war on Day 4 of conflict

Man accused of plot to assassinate Trump says Iran pressured him

The allegation sounded like the stuff of spy movies: A Pakistani businessman trying to hire hit men, even handing them $5...
US and Mideast countries seek Kyiv's drone expertise as Russia-Ukraine talks put on ice

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — The United States and its allies in the Middle East are seeking Ukraine's expertise incountering Iran's Shahed drones,according to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

Associated Press A Ukrainian soldier of the 48th separate brigade launches a reconnaissance drone in Kharkiv region, Ukraine, Wednesday, March 4, 2026. (AP Photo/Andrii Marienko) A Ukrainian soldier of the 48th separate brigade launches a reconnaissance drone in Kharkiv region, Ukraine, Wednesday, March 4, 2026. (AP Photo/Andrii Marienko)

APTOPIX Russia Ukraine War

Various countries, including the United States, have approached Ukraine for help in defending against the Iranian drones, Zelenskyy said late Wednesday. He said he has spoken in recent days with the leaders of the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Bahrain, Jordan and Kuwait about possible cooperation.

Russia has fired tens of thousands of Shaheds at Ukraine since itinvaded its neighborjust over four years ago, launching a swarm of more than 800 drones and decoys in itsbiggest nighttime barrage. Iran has responded to joint U.S.-Israeli strikes by launching the same type of drones at countries in the Middle East.

Ukrainian assistance in countering Iranian drones will be provided only if it does not weaken Ukraine's own defenses, and if it adds leverage to Kyiv's diplomatic efforts to stop the Russian invasion, according to the Ukrainian leader.

"We help to defend from war those who help us, Ukraine, bring a just end to the war" with Russia, Zelenskyy said.

Ukraine has battle-tested drone defenses

Ukraine has pioneered the development ofcut-price drone killersthat cost as little as $1,000, rewriting the air defense rule book and making other countries take notice.

European countries gota wake-up calllast September on the changed nature of air defense when Poland scrambled multimillion-dollar military assets, including F-35 and F-16 fighter jets and Black Hawk helicopters, in response to airspace violations by cheap drones.

Ukrainian manufacturers have developed low-cost interceptor drones specifically designed to hunt and destroy Shaheds, and its rapidly expanding drone industry is producing excess capacity.

Zelenskyy announced earlier this year that Ukraine would begin exporting the battle-tested systems.

The European Union's top diplomat, Kaja Kallas, said before chairing a meeting of EU and Gulf foreign ministers via video link Thursday that the talks would look at how Ukraine's experience can help countries counter Iranian drones.

Middle East war delays Russia-Ukraine talks

The Iran war,now in its sixth day, has drawn international attention away from Europe's biggest conflict since World War II, and forced the postponement of a new round ofU. S-brokered talksbetween Russia and Ukraine planned for this week, Zelenskyy said.

Western governments and analysts say the Russia-Ukraine war has killed hundreds of thousands of people, while there is no sign that yearlongU.S.-led peace effortswill stop the fighting any time soon.

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"Right now, because of the situation around Iran, there are not yet the necessary signals for a trilateral meeting," Zelenskyy said. "But as soon as the security situation and the overall political context allow us to resume that trilateral diplomatic work, it will be done."

Zelenskyy thanked the United States for the return from Russia on Thursday of 200 Ukrainian prisoners of war. Russia's Defense Ministry also said it received the same number of prisoners from Ukraine and thanked the U.S. and United Arab Emirates for mediating.

Prisoner swaps have been one of the few tangible results of the talks. Vladimir Medinsky, a Russian negotiator, said on social media that a total of 500 prisoners from each side would be exchanged between Thursday and Friday.

Oleksandr Merezhko, the head of Ukraine's parliamentary foreign affairs committee, said Russian President Vladimir Putin is trying to drag out the negotiations so that he can press on with Russia's invasion while escaping further U.S. sanctions.

He urged the U.S. administration to look at the Russia-Ukraine war and the war in the Middle East as linked.

"In reality, Russia and Iran are close allies that act in concert — Iran supplies weapons and Russia helps Iran develop its defense industry. These are interconnected conflicts," Merezhko told The Associated Press.

Ukraine's army has recently pushed back Russian forces at some points along the roughly 1,250-kilometer (750-mile) front line, according to the Institute for the Study of War.

Localized Ukrainian counterattacks liberated more territory than Ukrainian forces lost in the last two weeks of February, the Washington-based think tank said this week, estimating the recovered land at about 257 square kilometers (100 square miles) since Jan. 1.

Associated Press writer Lorne Cook in Brussels contributed to this report.

Follow AP's coverage of the war in Ukraine athttps://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine

US and Mideast countries seek Kyiv's drone expertise as Russia-Ukraine talks put on ice

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — The United States and its allies in the Middle East are seeking Ukraine's expertise incountering...
Travis Kelce seen chatting with Donald Trump's granddaughter after president trashed Taylor Swift

Travis Kelcewas spotted engaged in conversation with Kai Trump, the granddaughter of PresidentDonald Trump, at a golf event Tuesday in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.

Entertainment Weekly Travis Kelce and Taylor Swift; Donald Trump and Kai TrumpCredit: Patrick Smith/Getty; Kai Trump/Instagram

The Kansas City Chiefs tight end attended the Jupiter Links GC and the Bay Golf Club at SoFi Center with his brother, retired NFL player Jason Kelce. They sat in the stands but also went down to the turf to talk with golf star Tiger Woods.

The moment with 18-year-old Trump was notable because the president has openly criticized Kelce's fiancée,Taylor Swift. The couple announcedtheir engagementin August.

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The "Fate of Ophelia" singer endorsed Trump's opponent, Kamala Harris, in the 2024 presidential campaign. The news came after Trump hadshared AI-generated imagesthat claimed Swift and her many fans supported him in the election. This despite the fact that Swift had previously backed Trump's 2020 opponent Joe Biden.

The former star ofThe Apprenticespoke about the images, which hesaid he didn't generate, and the potential threat of Swift's team suing.

Kai Trump and Travis KelceCredit: Rich Storry/TGL/TGL Golf via Getty (2)

"I don't know anything about them other than somebody else generated them, I didn't generate them," he told Fox Business in a moment that the network's Grady Trimble shared on X. "Somebody came out, they said, 'Oh, look at this.' These were all made up by other people."

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The politician didn't take Swift's choice well, and it prompted him to declare, "I HATE TAYLOR SWIFT" on social media.

In May, Trump, 79, declared that the looks of Swift, 36, had diminished since he expressed his hatred.

"Has anyone noticed that, since I said 'I HATE TAYLOR SWIFT,' she's no longer 'HOT?'" he asked his millions of followers on his own Truth Social.

Travis Kelce and Taylor SwiftCredit: Taylor Swift & Travis Kelce

Still, Kelce said ahead of the Super Bowl in 2025 that he was honored to have Trump attend his team's game against the Philadelphia Eagles.

"It's a great honor, no matter who the president is,"Kelce said. "I know I'm excited because it's the biggest game of my life, you know? And having the president there — it's the best country in the world, so, it'll be pretty cool."

After Kelce and the Chiefs lost, Trump made fun of them at an event.

Entertainment Weeklyhas reached out to reps for Kelce and Swift.

Read the original article onEntertainment Weekly

Travis Kelce seen chatting with Donald Trump's granddaughter after president trashed Taylor Swift

Travis Kelcewas spotted engaged in conversation with Kai Trump, the granddaughter of PresidentDonald Trump, at a golf eve...
Kim Kardashian Transforms into a Vegas Showgirl on Set of New Movie Alongside a Nearly Unrecognizable Will Ferrell

Kim Kardashian and Will Ferrell were pictured filming their Netflix comedy movie The Fifth Wheel on Wednesday, March 4

People Kim Kardashian and Will Ferrell on the set of 'The Fifth Wheel'Credit: BACKGRID

NEED TO KNOW

  • Kardashian sported a feather headpiece and bejeweled bodysuit for the scenes, while Ferrell was nearly unrecognizable in a long blonde wig and beard

  • The Fifth Wheel also stars the likes of Nikki Glaser, Brenda Song and Fortune Feimster

Kim Kardashianis in her leading lady era!

On Wednesday, March 4,The Kardashiansstar, 45, was pictured on the set of her upcoming Netflix comedy —The Fifth Wheel— alongside her costarWill Ferrell.

The SKIMS founder sported a bejweled bodysuit and feather headpiece as she transformed into a Las Vegas showgirl for her role in the movie, while Ferrell, 58, was nearly unrecognizable in a long blonde wig and beard.

The duo could be seen filming outside a venue and on a sidewalk, with Kardashian appearing to hand something to Ferrell.

A purple car featuring Ferrell's character with the name "Brad" printed across it was also nearby.

Kim Kardashian and Will FerrellCredit: BACKGRID

Kardashian teamed her red and black corseted bodysuit with long red gloves, a red and black glittery cape and a pair of sparkly black heels. Meanwhile, Ferrell's look consisted of black leather pants and a shirt with sheer sleeves and silver rings on each of his fingers.

According to the movie's official logline,The Fifth Wheelfollows a group of high school best friends as they "attempt to reconnect during a weekend jaunt to Vegas. When a hot outsider (played by Kim Kardashian) crashes the weekend, they're forced to face their messy lives, bad decisions, and unraveling friendships."

Kardashian and Ferrell are also producing the movie, which is being directed by Eva Longoria, while the likes of Nikki Glaser, Fortune Feimster, Brenda Song, Jack Whitehall, Casey Wilson and Scott MacArthur make up the cast. Back in January, Netflix shared a first look image at the film with a photo of Kardashian, Glaser, Feimster and Song all posing on the back of a truck.

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PEOPLEpreviously reportedthat Kardashian was starring in and producing the female-driven comedy in November 2023. According toVariety, the movie is being filmed in L.A.

The film marks Kardashian's first leading film role. Her move into feature film acting comes after she starred in Hulu's legal dramaAll's Fairas lawyerAllura Grant, and the most recent season of FX'sAmerican Horror Story, in which she played a publicist named Siobhan who works forEmma Roberts's actress character Anna Victoria Alcott.

Kim KardashianCredit: BACKGRID

Back in January, Kardashian admitted she was "overwhelmed" amid the harsh criticism of All's Fair, which also stars herAmerican Horror StorycostarSarah Paulson,Glenn Close,Niecy Nash-Betts,Naomi WattsandTeyana Taylor.

"I was like, overwhelmed," Kim told her sisterKhloé Kardashianduring an appearance on herKhloé in Wonder Landpodcast. "I'm a firm believer in addressing something head on and quickly. Whether it'snaming Kimonoand then changing it to SKIMS and acting quickly. I hear you."

Will FerrellCredit: Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty

"Sometimes I wish I did act more quickly," she added of addressing rumors or backlash. "Sometimes I'm like, 'Oh, I'm not gonna give it attention because I can't sit there all day and shut everything down. And then sometimes I get annoyed enough and I'm like .... Sometimes you just have to give a statement. It depends on my mood."

Kim Kardashian, Nikki Glaser, Brenda Song and Fortune FeimsterCredit: Glen Wilson/Netflix

Kim made her onscreen acting debut in the 2008 spoof movieDisaster Movie. She has also appeared in films likeOcean's Eight,Deep in the Valleyand Tyler Perry's 2013 filmTemptation: Confession of a Marriage Counselor, in addition to a number of television and film appearances as herself.

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She also lent her voice to the character Delores in the two recent animatedPAW Patrolmovies, and in June last year,Varietyreported that the reality star would also be starring in a "Bratz" movie from Amazon MGM.

Read the original article onPeople

Kim Kardashian Transforms into a Vegas Showgirl on Set of New Movie Alongside a Nearly Unrecognizable Will Ferrell

Kim Kardashian and Will Ferrell were pictured filming their Netflix comedy movie The Fifth Wheel on Wednesday, March 4 ...
Community rattled after 3 women found dead in Utah, suspect at large

A Utah community was on edge and warned to stay inside with doors locked as authorities on March 5 continue hunting for a suspect they believe is responsible for the deaths of three women.

USA TODAY

The women were discovered dead in different locations in Wayne County in the southern part of the state on March 4, according to theUtah Department of Public Safety, which said it is investigating along with local law enforcement.

On the afternoon of March 4, authorities received a call about two women found dead on a hiking trail. A third woman was found dead at a residence in the county. The women are in their 30s, 60s and 80s, according to the department. Officials haven't said why they believe the deaths in separate locations are linked.

Authorities are searching for a 2022 white Subaru Outback with license plate U560YF, and are asking for the public to report any sightings but not to approach the vehicle if spotted. No description of a suspect was given.

As the suspect remains at large, the Department of Public Safety and the Wayne County Sheriff's Office asked the community in the town of Torrey and surrounding areas to remain vigilant.

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More:Homicides fell sharply in large US cities in 2025, new report says

"Due to recent incidents that have occurred in Wayne County today, WCSO is asking that all residents take extra precautions, keep lights on, keep doors locked, remain home or with others this evening if possible," the sheriff's officesaidlate on March 4.

Authorities in neighboring Garfield County on March 4 also asked residents to lock their doors but said they had no reason to believe the suspect had traveled there, and later said they believe "there is no longer a threat in our area."

The WayneCounty School District shuttered schools"out of an abundance of caution and concern for student and public safety" on March 5 and 6, and alocal health clinicsaid it was also closing its doors March 5.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY:3 women found dead in Wayne County, Utah, murders; suspect at large

Community rattled after 3 women found dead in Utah, suspect at large

A Utah community was on edge and warned to stay inside with doors locked as authorities on March 5 continue hunting fo...
Denmark to consider if gastronomy is art as New Nordic cuisine movement grows

COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — Imagine dining on "edible plastic" made from algae and collagen from fish skins. While you ingest the dish, ocean-borne plastic pollution seemingly floats above you, projected across the restaurant's huge domed ceiling. It's an experience — and dish — inspired by large garbage patches found in our seas.

Associated Press A dish named Chefs prepare the dishes inside the prep kitchen at restaurant Alchemist in Copenhagen, Denmark, Feb. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/James Brooks) A dish named Chiefs prepare food at the restaurant Kadeau in Copenhagen, Denmark, Feb. 12, 2026. (AP Photo/James Brooks) A cured squid, white cabbage, hazelnuts and walnuts dish served at restaurant Kadeau in Copenhagen, Denmark, Feb. 12, 2026. (AP Photo/James Brooks)

Denmark Gastronomy Art

InDenmark, chefRasmus Munkdoes not offer dishes at the Alchemist restaurant. Instead, he whisks guests on an "immersive dining experience" combining performance, music, projections in its planetarium-like domed dining room, and, of course, food.

Opened in 2019 at the site of a former industrial harbor area in the Danish capital, Copenhagen, Alchemist was named the world's fifth-best restaurant in 2025. It has two Michelin stars, signifying excellence in cuisine, out of a maximum three possible for one establishment.

Guests at this restaurant can experience 50 "impressions," most of them edible. Dining there means trying various foods — a large eyeball dish featuring caviar and codfish eye gel, nettle butterflies served atop cheese and artichoke leaves — over many hours, in a slow process that invites reflection on the food and surrounding projections.

"We convey messages through our food, our food is our medium of expressing ourselves," said Munk, whose dishes also explore issues such as state surveillance and animal welfare.

Parliament will decide if gastronomy can be an art form

Once known for bacon, herring, and rye bread, the Scandinavian country's cuisine has been in ascendancy since 2003 when René Redzepi's world-beating Noma first burst onto the scene, preaching a "New Nordic" philosophy that celebrated foraging, fermenting and Scandinavia's seasonal larder.

Emboldened by the success of the New Nordic movement, Denmark's Michelin-starred restaurants are now asking a new question: Can gastronomy be art?

Culture Minister Jakob Engel-Schmidt said in January that Denmark would explore whether gastronomy could be formally recognized as an art form. If realized, it could become the first nation to legally place cooking — or at least the highest versions of it — on a similar pedestal to painting.

It is not clear how the culture ministry's plans will be impacted by the country's March 24general election.

Munk, 34, who says he spent almost a decade honing his "artistic practices," has been a driving force behind the move and described it as a "big milestone."

"I don't think all food is art… I think the craftsmanship needs to be on the highest level," he said, adding that ultimately it is a political decision what gets called art and what not and that, for now, "this is a closed society for chefs."

The change, still in its exploratory phase, would eventually require a vote in Denmark's 179-seat parliament to reclassify gastronomy from craft to art.

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It could also make the country's chefs eligible for state subsidies and funding from private foundations — like writers and musicians — to get their projects off the ground.

A dining destination

Other nations with famed food cultures, including France and Japan, haven't made similar moves. Last year, UNESCO grantedItalian cookingcultural heritage status.

Denmark has previously expanded what constitutes art and culture, for example by awarding a lifetime national arts honor to heavy metal act King Diamond. Last year, the Sonning Prize, Denmark's largest cultural award, was awarded to French gastronomic artist and chemist Hervé This.

The Nordic nation of six million people has become a dining destination, home to 37 Michelin-starred restaurants, including Copenhagen's two-star Kadeau, which was opened in 2011 by head chef and creative director Nicolai Nørregaard.

"I approach it like I would approach making a piece of art, like an artwork or a piece of writing," said Nørregaard. "It's about getting sort of an experience."

The 46-year-old head chef, whose recipes reference the seasonal flavors of Danish island Bornholm, said such recognition would be a "big step."

"To acknowledge that this can also be looked upon as art… that's what's important for me," he added.

'It doesn't make any sense'

But not everyone, even some within the industry, are toasting the idea.

Nick Curtin, the American executive chef and owner of Copenhagen's Michelin-starred Alouette restaurant, argues art and gastronomy are fundamentally different.

"Art's sole purpose is expression. It's to evoke emotion. Food must be consumed," he said. "(Art) can evoke disgust or disappointment or pain or sorrow or joy or longing. Food actually can't express all of those things. It can, but it shouldn't."

Some in Denmark's art scene have also expressed concern such a change might see greater competition for funding between chefs and more traditional artists like painters.

Holger Dahl, the architecture and art critic at Denmark's 277-year-old Berlingske newspaper, is more blunt: "I think it's quite silly, there's no use, it doesn't make any sense."

He added: "It's a little bit like a bicycle and a car — they have round wheels, they'll take you from one point to another point, but it's not like a very good bicycle all of a sudden turns into a car. It doesn't happen."

Denmark to consider if gastronomy is art as New Nordic cuisine movement grows

COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — Imagine dining on "edible plastic" made from algae and collagen from fish skins. Whi...

 

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