Utah teen held hostage for 500 days showed FBI her captor’s knife during secret video call
UTAH, GARDEN CITY: A secret video call with the investigators became the turning point in the search for Kylie Arellano, the Utah teenager who had been missing for more than 500 days.
After making contact with another girl through the online game 'Among Us', Kylie managed to disclose that she was being held at a home in Oregon.
During the call monitored by FBI, she showed them a knife that her alleged captor kept beside her bed, helping them establish that her account was genuine and pinpoint where she was being held.
Kylie's miraculous rescue after 500 days
For months, Kylie had apparently been cut off from the people who could help her.
The turning point came through an unlikely online connection with another girl she met while playing the video game 'Among Us' in October 2026, according to the criminal complaint.
The two eventually shifted their conversations to a social media platform.
It was there that Kylie disclosed who she was and revealed that she was being held against her will.
She also expressed her fear that authorities might have stopped searching for her.
The girl did not approach investigators herself. Instead, she told her mother what Kylie had shared, prompting the woman to alert the FBI.
Federal investigators subsequently established direct contact with Kylie through a video call.
The conversation allowed them to hear her allegations firsthand and gather details that could be independently checked.
Among the details Kylie reportedly showed during the call was a knife that she said her captor kept under his pillow.
According to her account, he slept with the weapon nearby and made her sleep pressed against the wall.
That information set the rescue operation in motion.
On November 1, Oregon State Police officers and federal agents located Kylie and arranged for her medical care.
The man accused of keeping her there, 39-year-old Adam Hunter Harmel, was subsequently taken into custody during a traffic stop in nearby Ontario, Oregon.
Last night, local police in Oregon brought a minor who had been missing for a year and a half to safety, acting on information provided by our @FBISaltLakeCity Field Office. We are grateful she can return home, and we will continue working with our partners to hold those responsible accountable. -DKP🇺🇸
— FBI Director Kash Patel (@FBIDirectorKash) November 2, 2026
Criminal complaint details alleged grooming
According to the criminal complaint, Harmel allegedly approached Kylie online in May 2025, claiming he had a physical disability and offering to pay for her trip to Oregon.
He later travelled from his home to Perry, Utah, to pick her up.
What followed, prosecutors allege, was a deliberate effort to cut her off from the outside world.
After Kylie got into his vehicle, Harmel allegedly discarded her phone and drove her across state lines to his residence in Huntington.
Investigators say he kept her confined in the basement and prevented her from leaving.
A subsequent search of the property reportedly turned up several weapons, including knives and firearms.
Harmel is charged with travelling across state lines with the intent to engage in criminal activity involving a minor.
A conviction carries a mandatory minimum prison sentence of 10 years.
