Law & Justice
17‑Year‑Old Utah Girl Found in Oregon After Online Lead, 39‑Year‑Old Arrested
A 17‑year‑old girl who vanished from Utah in May last year was located in Huntington, Oregon, after investigators traced her online contacts. The FBI’s Salt Lake City Field Office received a tip on August 20 that the girl had disappeared around May 29. Her parents had filed a missing‑person report in June. The FBI examined her gaming and social‑media activity and learned she had exchanged sexually explicit images for money and had expressed self‑harm concerns.
A breakthrough came when the missing girl contacted another minor after playing the online game Among Us on October 15. The other minor, who had met the girl in the game, later continued the conversation on a social‑media app. The girl told the minor she had run away but was being held against her will at a man’s home in Oregon and that police were no longer looking for her.
Investigators arranged a video call between the girl and a family member on Sunday, with FBI agents monitoring the conversation. During the call the girl identified Adam Hunter Harmel, 39, as the man she had met online in May 2025. She said he had offered her money to travel to Oregon, driven from Oregon to Perry, Utah, to pick her up, and later taken her back to Oregon. The complaint alleges he threw her phone into a river in Logan Canyon, forced her to remove her braces with pliers, and sexually assaulted her at the residence in both 2025 and 2026.
The Oregon State Police responded to a residence on Fulton Street East in Huntington shortly before noon on Sunday after a request from the FBI. They took the girl into protective custody, provided medical treatment and evaluation, and recovered knives, women’s clothing and sexual lubricant from the property. Items initially suspected to be firearms were identified as BB guns. An interview with another resident confirmed that Harmel had travelled to Utah in 2025 to meet the girl before bringing her back to Oregon and described her as his new girlfriend.
Harmel was arrested during a traffic stop in Ontario, about 30 miles from the Huntington home. He has been charged with transporting a minor across state lines with the intent to engage in criminal sexual activity. The federal complaint was filed on November 2 in the U.S. District Court for the District of Utah.
Frequently asked questions
When and where was the missing 17‑year‑old girl located?
She was located in Huntington, Oregon after investigators traced her online contacts; the FBI received a tip on August 20 that she had disappeared around May 29.
What charges has Adam Hunter Harmel been filed with?
He has been charged with transporting a minor across state lines with the intent to engage in criminal sexual activity; a federal complaint was filed on November 2 in the U.S. District Court for the District of Utah.
What items were recovered from the residence in Huntington?
Police recovered knives, women’s clothing, and sexual lubricant; items initially suspected to be firearms were identified as BB guns.