Harmony Montgomery was beaten by father over bathroom accidents, horror affidavit reveals
Harmony was last seen alive in October 2019, and an investigation into her disappearance was initiated in December 2021
The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday
Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US
Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US
Newly unsealed court documents paint a horrifying picture of Harmony Montgomery’s final moments, including how her father Adam Montgomery allegedly killed the five-year-old girl and then spent months moving her body around.
During an interview with police detectives, Adam’s estranged wife Kayla Montgomery said he repeatedly punched Harmony in the face on 7 December 2019, after becoming upset with her for having bathroom accidents in the car their family was staying in.
Harmony had been living with Adam, Kayla, and their three children in Manchester, New Hampshire, since February 2019, after her mother Crystal Sorey lost custody in 2018 due to a substance abuse issue.
They were evicted in November 2019.
Harmony was last seen alive in October 2019, and an investigation into her disappearance was initiated in December 2021. Her remains have never been found.
‘Catastrophic implosion’, tangled in Titanic, lost at sea: Three expert theories on fate of missing sub
‘Banging’ heard in search for missing Titanic tourist submarine with less than 24 hours of oxygen left – live
OceanGate CEO complained about ‘obscenely safe’ regulations years before Titanic sub went missing
The 48-page affidavit of probable cause was submitted with an arrest warrant for Adam, who was charged with her murder last October. The document was obtained by Law & Crime after it was unsealed on Tuesday 20 June.
Kayla described how Adam allegedly “delivered sets of three-to-four blows with a closed fist to Harmony’s face/head on three separate occasions over the course of a few minutes” on the December morning when she died.
After the final blow, Adam reportedly said “I think I really hurt her this time. I think I did something”, Kayla recalled, adding Harmony made a “moaning type noise” for approximately five minutes “and then stopped”.
No one checked on Harmony or stopped to get her medical attention, Kayla told investigating officers, as the family continued on to a Burger King before returning to the apartment complex where they parked their car since being evicted from their home.
They remained in the parking lot for 20 minutes before driving off again. In a second interview, Kayla admitted she and Adam used heroin and fentanyl during this interval.
It was only when their car, a Chrysler Sebring, broke down that Kayla and Adam discovered “Harmony was not breathing” and had died.
Adam then allegedly placed Harmony’s lifeless body in a red duffel bag. While living in the parking lot, Kayla claimed Adam would occasionally leave Harmony’s body out in the snow to slow the rate of decomposition.
When the family moved in with Kayla’s mother and her boyfriend, Adam placed the duffel bag in a red cooler in the common hallway of their apartment building.
After that, the Montgomerys moved into a shelter house, where the bag began to leak and emit an odour. Adam reportedly put the duffel bag into a trash bag, and stowed it inside a vent shaft in the ceiling of their room.
Police officers later removed the entire section of the ceiling, including the vent, and found stains consistent with signs of decomposition.
Kayla also gave detectives two different versions of how Adam transferred Harmony’s body to a much smaller, maternity tote bag which “would not likely fit Harmony’s body unless it was dismembered or grossly distorted”.
In spring 2020, Kayla said Adam rented a U-haul truck to dispose off Harmony’s body during the middle of the night. When he returned the next morning, he allegedly “said words to the effect of ‘it’s done’”.
On 24 October 2022, Adam was charged one count of second-degree murder for recklessly causing the death of Harmony. Other charges against the 33-year-old include falsifying evidence for altering, destroying, concealing or removing the girl’s body and the abuse of a corpse for unlawfully removing, concealing or destroying Harmony’s body.
Adam has also been accused of tampering with witnesses or informants, which he allegedly did by attempting to coerce Kayla into lying to investigators.
His trial is scheduled for November.
Kayla was sent to prison for at least a year and a half last November after pleading guilty to perjury charges.
She admitted she had lied to a grand jury about working at a doughnut shop on 30 November 2019, the day she said she last saw her step-daughter.
She also agreed to cooperate with prosecutors who have charged her estranged husband with second-degree murder in the child’s death.
The Independent has contacted Adam’s legal team for comment.