Nancy Guthrie‘s family has taken to social media to beg for her return … but cops say that doesn’t mean they’ve been cleared of wrongdoing yet — because no one has.

Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos sat down with Briana Whitney — a true-crime reporter for Arizona’s KTVK-TV — who asked him if Nancy’s fam has officially been cleared in her Tucson-area disappearance.

Sheriff Nanos explains that everyone — Nancy’s family especially — has been cooperating with the investigation … including giving statements and submitting to DNA testing.

That said, Nanos promises to follow the evidence in whatever direction it leads … pointing out that they interviewed Carlos — a delivery driver — the other day, and they had no reason to hold him, but he wouldn’t say if they’ve cleared him yet.

Whitney presses Nanos in the interview specifically about family … and Nanos says no one has been cleared in the investigation, not even members of the family.

Part of the reason Whitney seemed so keen to get an answer on the family question might be because reports came out that Tommaso Cioni — who is married to Nancy’s daughter, Annie — was being examined as a possible suspect. The sheriff’s officer later denied the report … telling us they hadn’t publicly identified anyone.

As you know … Nancy was last seen on Saturday, January 31, after having dinner with family members. We received an alleged ransom note days after asking for money in exchange for Nancy, which we passed on to law enforcement.