Harmony Montgomery’s mother says father of child is ‘evil man,’ dad faces new indictment

Adam Montgomery.Manchester Police Department via AP, File

Crystal Sorey, the mother of Harmony Montgomery, expressed hope Tuesday that the missing child’s biological father will disclose what happened to the now 8-year-old girl to reduce any prison sentence he may face.

In a series of text messages with the Globe following a court hearing for Adam Montgomery, Sorey wrote that she has repeatedly asked New Hampshire authorities for an opportunity to speak with her former boyfriend and is convinced doing so could end the mystery of Harmony’s fate.

“I truly believe he would tell me just to hurt me & watch me in agony,” she texted. “He’s an evil man.”

Sorey was among the public watching over the Internet on Tuesday as defense attorneys for Montgomery and a prosecutor from New Hampshire Attorney General John M. Formella’s office laid out broad plans to start the first of potentially three trials in November or December.

The hearing was held as prosecutors disclosed they have obtained indictments against Montgomery based on information made public in April. The new charges, for which the 32-year-old Montgomery has not yet been arraigned, allege that he stole a shotgun and rifle from someone in Manchester, N.H., identified only as “CF” between Sept. 29, 2019, and Oct. 22, 2019.

Due to prior felony convictions in both New Hampshire and Massachusetts, Montgomery then became a felon in possession of a firearm, a separate new indictment. The final new charges are two counts of being an armed career criminal having been convicted in Hillsborough Superior Court in 2009 for first-degree assault, a 2008 conviction in the same courthouse for criminal threatening, and two convictions in Middlesex Superior Court for armed robbery in 2009 and assault and battery with a dangerous weapon in 2014.

In text messages to the Globe, Sorey wrote she has asked to speak directly with Montgomery “a million times” but has been told she must not do so while the search for her daughter — who turned 8 earlier this month — is ongoing and while Montgomery is under indictment on multiple felonies.

“I am hoping that at some point they’re going to strike a deal in order to get the information we need,” Sorey wrote. ”It’s not gonna be a very beneficial deal on his part, but I’m hoping that he’ll have no choice.”

During an 18-minute hearing before Hillsborough Superior Court Judge Amy Messer, the lawyers said there have been conversations about a plea deal resolving some or all of the criminal charges Montgomery faces but that no formal negotiations have taken place.

Montgomery is currently jailed without bail after pleading not guilty to charges of second-degree assault against Harmony, a felony, interference with custody, and endangering the welfare of a child, according to court records.

Montgomery had legal custody of his daughter in 2019 despite a violent criminal history in both New Hampshire and Massachusetts. The Office of the Child Advocate has called that decision by a Massachusetts judge a failure of the child protection system.

According to authorities, Montgomery told investigators he last saw Harmony around Thanksgiving 2019 when he gave her to Sorey, a claim prosecutors allege is false.

His wife, 31-year-old Kayla Montgomery, is charged with lying to a grand jury investigating the child’s disappearance and collecting welfare benefits after the child was no longer living with the couple. She has pleaded not guilty.

Kayla Montgomery is also accused of receiving a rifle and a shotgun between Sept. 29, 2019, and Oct. 22, 2019, knowing that they had been stolen or believing they had probably been stolen, according to court records. She has not yet been arraigned on these new charges.

The search for Harmony is ongoing, according to New Hampshire law enforcement.

Sorey wrote that she believes, and hopes, the search for her daughter will continue.

“I’m always going to hold onto hope until I see proof that she’s deceased,’' she wrote.