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The murder of little Harmony Montgomery: Stepmom Kayla declared ‘fugitive’ after failing to appear in court

Little Harmony was killed in Manchester around the time of her disappearance in December 2019, when she was 5 years old

MANCHESTER, NEW HAMPSHIRE: An arrest warrant has been issued for Kayla Montgomery, the stepmother of five-year-old New Hampshire girl Harmony Montgomery. The girl who was 5 when she went missing was declared dead after authorities failed to find her body more than three years after she disappeared.

Kayla Montgomery, 32, was declared a fugitive Thursday, September 8, after failing to appear in court for a hearing on her long-missing daughter. She allegedly lied to the state Department of Health that Harmony was still in her care and faces charges for that.

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Kayla was also arrested in January earlier this year for welfare fraud by collecting food stamps worth $1500 in Harmony’s name for a year after her disappearance for which she pleaded not guilty. She was last seen alive by her mother in 2019 but the police became involved only in 2021. Manchester police announced on August 11 that she was murdered in December 2019 and her death is being treated as a homicide. “While Harmony's remains have not yet been located, we do have multiple sources of investigative information, including just-recently confirmed biological evidence, that have led us to this difficult and tragic conclusion,” said New Hampshire Attorney General John Formella. He also added that the investigation is no longer focused on her disappearance but on finding the person responsible for killing her. Although officers will not reveal details of the biological evidence acquired. 

Harmony’s Biological mother Crystal Sorey lost custody in 2018 due to a documented history of drug abuse. She has been living in her father Adam’s care since, but the young girl's short life was plagued with allegations of abuse and being shifted in and out of social care. According to a statement made by Mayor Joyce Craig’s office to WMUR News 9, the Mayor's office received an email in December 2021 regarding Harmony. Although the contents of the email is not clear it is said to be around issues regarding Follow Up from the division for Children, Youth and Families. Despite the department of children having come knocking on Adam’s door amid multiple reports of abuse, during one visit in July 2019, Harmony was found with a black eye. She was surprisingly still allowed to stay in her father's care. Montgomery's uncle, Kevin Montgomery recounted incidents including spanking, forcing the then five-year-old to scrub the toilet with her toothbrush, and leaving her standing in the corner for hours, investigators say. Kevin told police his nephew once admitted to him that he 'bashed her around this house' during one instance in 2019 after the father reportedly found her trying to get her younger brother to stop crying while she was bathing him.

During the last months, she was seen alive, there were multiple reports to child services about bruises and marks on her face causing case workers to visit the Manchester apartment multiple times in 2019, 2020, and 2021. Adam Montgomery was never charged until January 2022 on suspicion of endangering the welfare of a child. He had never reported harmony missing. He has pleaded not guilty and is being jailed in New Hampshire without bail. It has since been revealed Adam was also considered a suspect in the February 2008 killing of Darlin Guzman, a 28-year-old computer repairman who was fatally shot in the parking lot of a convenience store in Lynn, Massachusetts. Adam, who has a criminal record that goes back at least to 2007, has been in jail since January in connection with the second-degree assault charge. In January 2022, Investigators search the home and garden in New Hampshire where Harmony lived with her father before her disappearance followed by a second search in June where the police were seen removing furniture and other pieces of furniture. Onlookers fear for harmony's fate after the police have officially declared the crime a homicide investigation. 

If you or anyone you know has information about the case, you are urged to call the dedicated tipline at 603-203-6060. Alternatively, you can also contact the Manchester Police Department at 603-668-8711.