Investigators finish searching former home of Harmony Montgomery's family
MANCHESTER, N.H. - Federal and state investigators finished searching a home in Manchester, New Hampshire Wednesday in connection with the disappearance of Harmony Montgomery.
Eight-year-old Harmony was reported missing in New Hampshire at the end of 2021 but she has not been seen since 2019 when she was five years old. No one has been charged in her disappearance.
Investigators from the FBI, United States Marshal's office, the New Hampshire Attorney General's office and Manchester Police spent all day Tuesday and part of Wednesday searching a house on Union Street as part of the case. The apartment is where Adam and Kayla Montgomery, the girl's father and stepmother, previously lived.
"The residents of the area are thanked for their patience as this investigative work continues. In order to protect the integrity of the ongoing investigation, officials will not be disclosing what items are being sought and what, if any, evidence is located. Officials also caution against any speculation related to items being removed," Attorney General John Formella said in a statement.
Investigators were seen bringing items out of the building with biohazard stickers placed on them.
Retired FBI special agent Jennifer Coffindaffer says the massive evidence gathering effort is a good sign. "I think they have a definite belief that they are going to find something there and I think they have found something," Coffindaffer said.
FBI agents also removed a sewer cap and sent a camera underneath the road and apartment complex.
"Because you are looking for any area where a girl of her stature and size could be secreted and hidden," Coffindaffer said.
Investigators also removed a refrigerator from the property to be taken into evidence and brought in a new one.
"The FBI cannot go into a place and remove items without replacing them," Coffindaffer said. "The FBI believes it needs to be processed for biological information and evidence."
Harmony's father, 32-year-old Adam Montgomery, is currently being held at the Hillsborough County House of Corrections on several charges. He was arrested in January and charged with felony second-degree assault stemming from alleged conduct against Harmony in 2019.
Harmony had been in the care of the Department of Children and Families (DCF) in Massachusetts starting back in 2014 before a Juvenile Court judge awarded custody to her father in New Hampshire in February 2019.
Stepmother Kayla Montgomery, 31, was taken into custody by Manchester, New Hampshire police last Friday and charged with two counts of perjury. She allegedly lied under oath about the time and location of a prior work shift.
Kayla Montgomery had been out on bail after being jailed on welfare fraud charges. Investigators claimed she was collecting benefits because Harmony was living with her and Adam Montgomery, but the girl was not actually there.
Kristin Rosati is a neighbor who has been volunteering to help search for Harmony since she went missing. She watched Tuesday as police inspected the property.
"I don't know if I want them to find something or I don't. I just want her to have justice and get some evidence so we can put the people who did the bad stuff away," she said.
"I hope they find something and get some closure," another neighbor said.
Martha Blackman, a friend of Harmony's mother, said she thinks the search could suggest an outcome that could be difficult to bear.
"I think what everyone else does. Nothing good," Blackman said.
The reward for information leading to Harmony is now $150,000.
