The father of the four children found dead alongside their mother and grandmother inside a New York apartment says he repeatedly begged police to check on his children in the days before the heartbreaking discovery, as new details emerge about a bitter custody dispute that was scheduled to return to court just days after the family died.

Brady Harmon, who lives in Utah, says the final weeks before the deaths of his children were filled with growing concern, unanswered phone calls and multiple requests for welfare checks after he lost contact with them.

Now, as investigators continue working to determine exactly what happened inside the Mechanicville apartment where six family members were found dead on June 23, Harmon says he cannot stop wondering whether the tragedy could have been prevented.

Speaking to CBS6, Harmon said the last time he spoke with his children was June 7.

His four children — 13-year-old Harper Harmon, 11-year-old Hudson Harmon, and 10-year-old twins Gavin and Gracelynn Harmon — had been living in New York with their mother, Sarah Myers, while he remained in Utah.

According to Harmon, he was scheduled to speak with the children again just days later.

Instead, he says Myers told him they were sick and would not allow them to come to the phone.

“She didn’t let you speak with them on the phone?” CBS6 reporter Briana Supardi asked during the interview.

“No,” Harmon replied.

That conversation immediately raised concerns for the father.

Unable to communicate with either Myers or the children, Harmon says he repeatedly contacted the Mechanicville Police Department requesting officers perform welfare checks at the apartment.

“I’ve actually called a couple times to do a wellness check,” he explained.

According to Harmon, he requested police visits on June 13, June 16, June 17 and June 19 after repeated efforts to reach the family proved unsuccessful.

Officers reportedly responded to the residence on each occasion.

Harmon says police later told him they could hear sounds coming from inside the apartment but received no response when they knocked on the door.

“They said they could hear things,” Harmon recalled.

“But I mean that could be a TV, could be a neighbor.”

CBS6 reported that it has asked the Mechanicville Police Department to confirm Harmon’s account of those welfare checks.

The television station also submitted a Freedom of Information Law request seeking records related to the reported police visits.

As of publication, police had not responded to those requests.

At the same time Harmon says he was desperately trying to make contact with his children, an ongoing custody dispute between him and Myers was moving forward in a Utah courtroom.

Court records obtained by CBS6 show Harmon filed a motion on June 2 asking the court to enforce a parenting agreement signed earlier this spring.

According to the filing, Harmon alleged Myers repeatedly violated several provisions of the parenting plan.

Among the complaints were claims that she failed to provide medical, dental, school and psychological records involving the children.

He also alleged she supplied an inaccurate residential address and interfered with his scheduled communication with the children.

The Utah court scheduled a hearing for June 29.

Myers was ordered to appear remotely and respond to the allegations.

“All she had to do was do a Zoom meeting,” Harmon said.

“So she didn’t have to come to Utah.”

Had the court determined Myers violated the parenting order, she could have faced sanctions that included financial penalties, jail time or other remedies intended to enforce the custody agreement.

That hearing will now never take place.

On June 23, police responding to a welfare check requested by a concerned neighbor entered the apartment building on Harris Avenue in Mechanicville.

Inside, officers discovered six bodies.

Authorities later identified the victims as 64-year-old Amy Steadman, her daughter Sarah Myers, and Myers’ four children: Harper, Hudson, Gavin and Gracelynn.

Steadman lived in the apartment where the bodies were found, while Myers and the children reportedly lived in another unit within the same apartment complex.

Initially, investigators announced they were treating the deaths as a criminal investigation while awaiting autopsy findings.

Police also emphasized there was no evidence suggesting any outside suspect remained at large and assured the public there was no continuing danger to the community.

Since then, investigators have released additional information pointing toward what they believe occurred inside the residence.

Police say a handwritten note, prescription medications and other evidence strongly suggest Steadman played a role in the deaths.

However, investigators have stopped short of announcing definitive conclusions while toxicology testing and forensic examinations continue.

Authorities have also disclosed that one of the four children suffered fatal stab wounds.

Officials have declined to identify which child sustained those injuries.

The causes and manners of death for all six victims remain officially pending until the medical examiner completes the investigation.

For Harmon, one of the most painful aspects of the tragedy is knowing how close he came to seeing his children again.

According to the parenting plan approved earlier this year, the four children were scheduled to travel to Utah on July 1.

They were expected to spend approximately two months with their father during summer visitation.

Instead, Harmon learned they had died only days before they were supposed to board that trip.

He now finds himself searching for answers that investigators have not yet provided.

Harmon says he has wondered whether the upcoming custody hearing or the children’s planned visit with him somehow contributed to whatever occurred inside the apartment.

He stressed, however, that those thoughts are only questions he personally struggles with, not conclusions supported by investigators.

Police have not announced any motive or publicly assigned legal responsibility while the investigation remains ongoing.

“I cannot understand what would make someone go to that length,” Harmon told CBS6.

Friends and neighbors have likewise struggled to comprehend the devastating loss.

Neighbor Amanda Gary previously described the deaths as deeply upsetting.

“It’s very upsetting,” she said after learning that four children had died.

“Knowing there’s four little babies, it’s very upsetting.”

The case has shocked the small Saratoga County community, where many residents continue waiting for investigators to explain exactly what unfolded inside the apartment during the family’s final days.

Authorities have remained cautious about releasing information while forensic testing continues.

Investigators have reiterated that evidence recovered at the scene is still being analyzed and that additional details regarding the causes and manners of death will be released only after toxicology reports and autopsy findings are completed.

Police have also stressed that, based on the evidence collected so far, they have found no indication any additional suspects were involved.

For Harmon, however, the unanswered questions are accompanied by overwhelming grief.

He says his repeated attempts to reach his children and his requests for welfare checks now haunt him as he wonders whether earlier intervention might have changed the outcome.

Those questions remain impossible to answer while investigators continue piecing together the family’s final days.

The Mechanicville Police Department has not publicly confirmed Harmon’s account regarding the multiple welfare check requests, and the department has not commented on the pending Freedom of Information request seeking documentation of those visits.

Until investigators release their final findings, many aspects of the tragedy remain unknown.

What is clear is that six members of one family lost their lives in an incident that has stunned an entire community and devastated a father who says he was counting down the days until he could embrace his children once again.

As authorities continue examining evidence, conducting toxicology testing and reviewing the handwritten note recovered inside the apartment, Harmon says he remains focused on honoring the memory of Harper, Hudson, Gavin and Gracelynn while hoping investigators can eventually explain how such an unimaginable tragedy unfolded.

For now, the investigation remains active, the official findings remain pending, and the painful questions surrounding the deaths of six family members continue without answers.