SALT LAKE CITY — A 39-year-old Oregon man appeared in federal court Wednesday, charged with transporting a missing Garden City teenager across state lines and holding her captive for more than a year.
Adam Hunter Harmel faces a federal count of transportation with intent to engage in criminal sexual activity following his arrest in eastern Oregon. Oregon State Police took Harmel into custody during a traffic stop in Ontario, Oregon, on Nov. 1, shortly after troopers assisted in the recovery of the 17-year-old, who had managed to escape from a home in nearby Huntington.
According to an affidavit by FBI special agents, the alleged victim disappeared from northern Utah on May 29, 2025. Investigators said Harmel met the teenager on a social media application earlier that month and offered her money to travel to Oregon, telling her he was disabled and needed assistance.
Harmel allegedly drove from Oregon to Perry, Utah, picked up the girl and drove her back to his home. After picking her up, Harmel threw her cellphone into a river in Logan Canyon to prevent tracking and told her upon arriving at his residence that she was not permitted to leave.
The affidavit details severe physical and sexual abuse throughout the girl’s confinement. Harmel allegedly slept in the same basement bed as the teenager, keeping a knife beneath his pillow and forcing her to sleep against the wall to prevent her escape. Authorities said Harmel repeatedly assaulted and struck the girl, expressed a desire to start a family, and forced her to remove her orthodontic braces using pliers so she could not be identified.
The teenager was recovered after the FBI received a tip on Nov. 1, 2026. A parent reported that their minor child met the missing girl while playing the online game “Among Us,” before the two transitioned to another messaging application. The victim disclosed that she had run away, police were no longer searching for her, and she was being held against her will at an Oregon home. She also shared news articles regarding her disappearance.
Federal agents observed a live video call with the teenager, during which she displayed the knife and evidence corroborating the abuse. Law enforcement subsequently recovered the girl from the residence, took her for medical evaluation, and seized evidence including knives, female clothing and BB guns.
Individuals arrested and charged in complaints are presumed innocent unless or until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in court.