MANCHESTER, N.H. — (AP) â A New Hampshire man was convicted of second-degree murder Thursday in the death of his 5-year-old daughter, who police believe was killed nearly two years before she was reported missing in 2021 and whose body was never found.
Adam Montgomery, 34, did not attend the trial and wasn’t present when jurors returned their verdict. He had proclaimed his innocence, saying in court last year in an unrelated case that he loved Harmony Montgomery “unconditionally.”
âI am grateful to the judge, jury, and Department of Justice for delivering justice for Harmony,” New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu said in a statement. “Adam Montgomery is a monster and deserves to spend the rest of his life in prison.â
Adam Montgomery’s attorneys earlier acknowledged his guilt on two lesser charges, that he âpurposely and unlawfully removed, concealed or destroyedâ her corpse and falsified physical evidence, but said he didnât kill his daughter. The jury also convicted him of assaulting Harmony Montgomery in 2019 and of tampering with the key prosecution witness, his estranged wife and stepmother of his daughter, Kayla Montgomery.
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Investigators believe Harmony Montgomery was slain in December 2019, though she wasn’t reported missing for almost two years. Kayla Montgomery testified that the body was hidden in the trunk of a car, a cooler, a ceiling vent and a workplace freezer before Adam Montgomery disposed of it.
Defense attorney James Brooks deferred comment to Caroline Smith, the main attorney representing Adam Montgomery. She did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Adam Montgomery had custody of the girl. Her mother, Crystal Sorey, who was no longer in a relationship with him, said the last time she saw Harmony Montgomery was during a video call in April 2019. She eventually went to police, who announced they were looking for the missing child on New Yearâs Eve 2021.
Photos of the girl were widely circulated on social media. Police eventually determined she had been killed.
âIâm relieved that thereâs some justice being served,â Sorey told WMUR-TV on Thursday. âObviously, itâs not over. I have a little bit of peace knowing that heâs being held accountable because he thought he was so untouchable and that she didnât matter, that nobody would miss her. He was so wrong, he was so wrong.â
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She said she still wants to find the remains of her daughter so she can finally bring her home.
âWeâve still got to find her,â police Chief Allen Aldenberg said Thursday. âThis girl deserves better than the life she had.â
Harmony Montgomery’s case has exposed weaknesses in child protection systems and provoked calls to prioritize the well-being of children over parents in custody matters. Harmony was moved between the homes of her mother and her foster parents multiple times before Adam Montgomery received custody in 2019 and moved to New Hampshire.
âI still firmly believe that some people in some other agencies need to be held accountable. And Iâm asking for that,â Aldenberg said, referring to child welfare officials in Massachusetts and New Hampshire. “This little 5-year-old girl, she deserves somebody to be held accountable that failed along the way because we wouldnât be standing here today if other people had done their job.â
Kayla Montgomery is serving an 18-month prison sentence after pleading guilty to perjury charges related to the investigation into the child’s disappearance and agreed to cooperate with prosecutors. She testified that that her husband killed Harmony Montgomery on Dec. 7, 2019, while the family lived in their car after being evicted from their home.
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Kayla Montgomery testified that her husband repeatedly punched Harmony Montgomery in the face and head because he was angry that she was having bathroom accidents in the car.
The couple noticed the girl was dead hours later when the car broke down, at which time Adam Montgomery put her body in a duffel bag, Kayla Montgomery had testified.
For the next three months, she testified, Adam Montgomery moved the body from container to container and place to place. According to his wife, the locations included the trunk of a friendâs car, a cooler in the hallway of his mother-in-lawâs apartment building, the ceiling vent of a homeless shelter and a workplace freezer.
Lead detective John Dunleavy said Thursday that while he considered the conviction a win, it did not feel complete since Harmony Montgomery was still missing.
âWe didnât find her,â he said. “I will be on the job for some time, I still have about 15 years left. And as long as Iâm a police officer, Iâm going to continue to look for her.â
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Prosecutor Benjamin Agati said at a news conference that the trial does not end the search for the girl. He said that after analyzing the mileage Adam Montgomery took with the rental truck into Massachusetts, there are about 26 miles (42 kilometers) that he could have covered where her remains might be.
âShe is somewhere along that route,â he said, pointing out previous searches in the Revere, Massachusetts, area. âThose are still our big areas of search.â
Agati said that when Montgomery is sentenced in the coming months, he should face a minimum sentence on the murder charge of 35 years to life, a tougher sentence because of his daughterâs young age. He said that would be consecutive with armed criminal charges for which he is already serving a minimum sentence of more than 33 years.
Asked if that meant Montgomery was never getting out of prison, the prosecutor said: âItâs a lot of time, and I hope Iâm not practicing at the time that that minimum date ever comes around.â
Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
CONCORD – While Republican Gov. Kelly Ayotte has said she opposes increasing highway toll rates across the state, the Senate voted Thursday to increase rates for out-of-state license plate holders.
It now goes to the House for consideration.
This would be a $1 increase for those who have out of state plates going through the tolls at Hooksett, Hampton and Bedford for out-of-state plates, a 75 cent hike for those taking Hampton’s Exit 2 and on the Spaulding turnpike at Rochester, and a 50 cent hike for those taking the exit off I-93 to Hooksett.
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An analysis in the bill shows that this would increase toll revenue by $53.3 million in fiscal year 2027 and go up each year to generate $81.4 million a year in 2036.
Senate Bill 627 passed on a voice vote with two Republicans, Senators Regina Birdsell of Hampstead and William Gannon of Sandown opposing.
Senator Mark E. McConkey, R-Freedom, moved to take the bill off the table and offered an amendment. He said the last time there was a systemwide increase to the turnpike toll was 19 years ago.
“I am sure we could all agree the cost of operations…has continued to escalate when revenue is not rising with it,” and he noted that with an enterprise fund, the state can only spend what it takes in.
The state has just completed a 10-year highway plan and there was a $400 million shortfall in projects that could not be paid for under the current income.
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McConkey said the measure would not increase tolls for New Hampshire drivers with a state license plate.
“Why don’t we ask our neighbors,” to pay a toll increase. “We are getting the best of all worlds,” by passing the bill, he said, including “protecting our residents” and having resources for improvements to the turnpike system.
Sen. Gannon, R-Sandown, asked McConkey if there are any studies on impacts near the border on businesses.
If implemented, McConkey said the state will be the 27th lowest in per mile cost still. McConkey said the bill would also increase from seven to 14 days the amount of time for those with NH license plates to pay for a toll adding there are other states that also have different rates for out-of-state users.
The Hampton toll cost would go from $2 to $3, while Hooksett and Bedford would rise from $1 to $2 for out-of-state plates.
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New Hampshire currently has the lowest rate per mile among states with tolls roads. The governor said she does not support a toll increase.
“We are not going to put a burden on drivers for a toll increase,” Ayotte said. “Families are struggling.”
WILTON, N.H. (WHDH) – A woman died in a Wilton, New Hampshire, house fire Wednesday morning, according to the New Hampshire State Fire Marshal’s Office.
At 9:08 a.m., Wilton firefighters responded to Burns Hill Road after a caller said their home was filling up with smoke. When they arrived, a single-family home was on fire and they found out two people were still inside on the second floor.
A man and a woman were both taken out of the house by firefighters and taken to Elliott Hospital. The woman was pronounced dead and the man is in serious condition.
Officials have not released the name of the victim at this time.
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At this time, investigators are looking into the cause of the fire and are trying to determine if a power outage in the area played a factor. The fire is not currently considered suspicious.
(Copyright (c) 2025 Sunbeam Television. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
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:quality(70)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/cmg/EXJALA6D4YFTNBJUEEDTWPYF74.jpg?ssl=1 "New Hampshire man convicted of killing daughter, 5, whose body has not been found")
