Stepmother of missing girl arrested on perjury charges
Manchester Police Chief Allen Aldenberg said Montgomery was arrested on two counts of perjury for lying to a grand jury.
MANCHESTER, N.H. (AP) — The stepmother of a New Hampshire girl who went missing in 2019 has been arrested for perjury, police said.
Kayla Montgomery, 31, was arrested Friday at the Manchester Police Department when she arrived for a daily check-in, WMUR-TV reported. The check-ins are required as part of Montgomery’s bail conditions after she was arrested on unrelated charges of receiving stolen firearms.
Manchester Police Chief Allen Aldenberg said Montgomery was arrested on two counts of perjury for lying to a grand jury. Other details were not immediately released. She is expected to be arraigned on Monday.
Her stepdaughter, Harmony Montgomery, was last seen in 2019 at age 5, but authorities didn’t know she was missing until last year.
Aldenberg told WMUR-TV that the arrest is “another step in the investigation into the whereabouts of Harmony Montgomery.”
“We will continue to do everything in our power to bring this case to a resolution,” Aldenberg said.
Kayla Montgomery was previously charged with theft by deception after police said she falsely claimed that her stepdaughter was living with her in order to collect welfare benefits. She pleaded not guilty and was released on bail last month.
Adam Montgomery, Harmony’s father, has been indicted on an assault charge alleging that he struck Harmony in the face in July 2019. He’s also accused of unrelated firearms theft charges and has pleaded not guilty.
The couple, described as estranged, told police that Harmony was brought to her mother in Massachusetts around Thanksgiving 2019. Her mother said she last saw her daughter during a phone video conversation about Easter that year.
Police have received hundreds of tips. They’re offering $150,000 for information that will lead them to Harmony.
Conversation
This discussion has ended. Please join elsewhere on Boston.com