In December of that year, Adam Montgomery is accused of repeatedly striking the 5-year-old girl in the head with a closed fist. The police did not learn that Harmony had vanished until late last year.
Harmony Montgomery, a 5-year-old New Hampshire girl, went missing in 2019, but her disappearance was not reported until late in 2018. On Monday, her father was taken into custody and charged with second-degree mur*der.
He is accused of repeatedly striking her in the head with a closed fist in December of that year.
Adam Montgomery, 32 years old, is also charged between December 2019 and March 2020 with lying about physical evidence and mistreating a deceased body. Authorities were unable to confirm if the girl’s body had been located.
Montgomery is also charged with tampering with a witness because he tried to get Kayla Montgomery, his wife and Harmony’s stepmother, to lie in court. Tuesday is his scheduled court date in Manchester.
Adam Montgomery’s attorney did not speak immediately.
At a news conference in Manchester, the state attorney general, John Formella, expressed his condolences to Harmony’s family, friends, and loved ones. “We are aware that today’s news, while significant for the investigation, is yet another difficult time for those who cared about Harmony and those who have been following this case,” they said.
The police announced in August that they were investigating a mu*rder. They believe that Harmony was mu*rdered in the state’s largest city, Manchester, in early December 2019.
Crystal Sorey, the mother of Harmony, contacted the police in November to report that her daughter might be missing. According to police, she had been searching for the girl for months without success.
According to the police, by the end of December they had spoken with Adam Montgomery, who was in charge of Harmony, and other family members. According to court documents, the police informed him that Harmony had not been seen in over two years and that people were concerned about her well-being.
Adam brought Harmony to live with Sorey in Massachusetts around the 2019 Thanksgiving holiday, according to Harmony’s father and stepmother, who have since pleaded not guilty to health-related charges. The last time Sorey saw her daughter was during an Easter phone video call that year, she said.
“I’m still in shock, it hasn’t really sunk in yet,” Sorey texted to the Associated Press. She also stated, “No one listened to me, and all of this could have been avoided, but now my family is facing its greatest battle!”
Last month, Adam Montgomery’s solicitors argued in court that some of his statements to police should not be used against him. When asked where his daughter was, he allegedly told police multiple times, “I have nothing else to say.” He also stated that he did not wish to speak with them, but police continued to question him.
In a separate case, he will appear in court next month on charges of stealing weapons.
Kayla Montgomery had her bail revoked because she failed to appear at a hearing where she was accused of lying to state health officials about caring for Harmony Montgomery.
The case of Harmony has received a great deal of support, including vigils and social media sites. Police offered cash rewards for information and established a 24-hour tip line.
At the press conference, Manchester Police Chief Allen Aldenberg requested that everyone do something kind for a child today in honour of Harmony. He also said, “Just take a few minutes out of your day to say something nice to a child, give him or her a hug, and some special words of encouragement.”
