A Utah teenager who was found alive in Oregon nearly 18 months after she disappeared was allegedly beaten multiple times and forced to remove her braces with pliers in an effort to conceal her identity, according to newly revealed court documents.
Kylie Arellano, now 17, disappeared from Garden City, Utah, on May 29, 2025, when she was 15. Federal prosecutors have charged a 39-year-old man in connection with her alleged captivity.
According to federal court documents reviewed by Fox News Digital, Adam Hunter Harmel allegedly became “very violent and aggressive, often hitting” Arellano. He also allegedly used pliers to force her to remove her braces so she would be more difficult to identify.
The federal complaint describes the conditions Arellano allegedly endured inside Harmel’s home. Prosecutors say he confined her to the basement, where the two shared a bed.
Harmel allegedly took additional steps to stop her from escaping, including keeping “a knife under his pillow” and making the minor victim sleep against the wall, according to the complaint.
Investigators allege that Harmel said he wanted to start a family with Arellano, acknowledged an interest in minors and sexually assaulted her repeatedly in 2025 and 2026. The complaint also alleges that he transported her across state lines with the intent to engage in criminal sexual activity.
Filed Nov. 2 in the US District Court for the District of Utah, the criminal complaint details an alleged pattern of online grooming, isolation and abuse.
For more than 500 days, Arellano’s mother kept searching and hoping after finding her daughter’s jacket abandoned in the driveway and discovering that her phone had been turned off.
The ordeal ended Nov. 1, when law enforcement rescued Arellano from an Oregon home after receiving a tip from the parent of another player of the online game “Among Us.”
In an affidavit, FBI Special Agent Andrea Elder said Arellano’s family reported in 2025 that she had been groomed online. The communication allegedly began on gaming platforms before shifting to other social media applications.
A law enforcement source said Harmel allegedly first met the teenager on Snapchat before her disappearance.
The FBI also learned that Arellano was allegedly groomed on platforms frequently used by members of Nihilistic Violent Extremist (NVE) groups to solicit sexually explicit and maiming-related photos, according to a Department of Justice release.
Authorities allege that Harmel met Arellano online in May 2025, claimed to have a disability involving his “messed up” hips and offered her money to travel to Oregon.
On or about May 29, 2025, Harmel drove from Oregon to Perry, Utah, to pick her up.
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According to the complaint, he threw Arellano’s phone into a river in Logan Canyon as soon as she got into his vehicle. He then drove her to his home in Huntington, Oregon, and allegedly told her she was not permitted to leave.
A housemate told the FBI that Harmel said he had brought home a “new girlfriend” from Utah. The housemate did not see Arellano until roughly two months after she arrived, when the teenager ran back into the basement.
The complaint says Harmel gave Arellano a phone without cellular data, restricting her internet access to Wi-Fi.
Arellano’s opportunity to seek help came in mid-October 2026, when she connected with another minor while playing “Among Us.”
After the conversation moved to another social media app, Arellano disclosed her identity and told the minor she was being held against her will in an Oregon home. She also said she believed police had stopped searching for her.
Her mother then contacted the FBI. During a Nov. 1 video call monitored by investigators, Arellano showed them the knife Harmel allegedly kept and other evidence supporting her account.
Oregon State Police and federal agents rescued Arellano later that day and took her for medical treatment.
A search of Harmel’s residence found knives, BB guns and sexual lubricant, according to the complaint. Authorities arrested him during a traffic stop in Ontario, Oregon.
Harmel was scheduled to make his initial appearance in federal court Wednesday.
Melissa Holyoak, the US attorney for the District of Utah, said in a statement that the case’s foremost priority was the “safe return of the minor victim.”
“Those who allegedly exploit and prey upon the most vulnerable members of our communities will be relentlessly investigated and held accountable.”
FBI Director Kash Patel also warned people who target and exploit children.
“The FBI and our partners are coming for you. We are using every tool at our disposal to combat nihilistic violent extremism, bring offenders to justice, and protect America’s most vulnerable,” he said.
