Father-Daughter Murder Plot: The Custody Battle That Turned Criminal

When custody disputes spiral, things usually stay in family court. But the case of Gabbie Gonzalez and her father Francisco Gonzalez took a sharp left turn into federal crime territory—and the details are as shocking as they are calculated.

According to investigators, Gabbie and her father allegedly hatched a plot to have Jack Avery, the father of her 7-year-old daughter Lavender, killed. But here’s where it gets darker: they didn’t just want him dead. Court documents obtained by authorities reveal that Gabbie and her alleged co-conspirator, her friend Kai Cordrey, discussed making the hit look like a car accident in Los Angeles. A personal injury lawyer helping orchestrate a hit disguised as a vehicular death—the irony cuts deep.

The alleged scheme involves significant money and careful coordination. Francisco, a practicing Florida attorney, reportedly sent $10,000 to Kai to recruit a hitman. Later, prosecutors say he participated in coded phone calls with an undercover agent posing as the killer, discussing Bitcoin payments and“verifying the target.”It reads like a crime thriller plot, except it’s real court testimony.

What makes this case particularly troubling is the motive. A witness told investigators that the Gonzalez family was“obsessed”with keeping Avery away from Lavender—so obsessed that Francisco allegedly said it would be cheaper if Avery were dead. Prosecutors paint a picture of a bitter custody dispute that transformed into something far more sinister, with Gabbie’s own father bankrolling what amounts to a permanent solution to a legal problem.

The FBI had already warned Avery last year that someone was trying to have him killed, but he may not have known his ex and her father were behind it. Both have been arrested. As of now, Francisco remains a member in good standing with the Florida Bar—a practicing attorney awaiting trial on murder-for-hire charges. That collision between professional status and alleged criminal conduct adds another layer of unsettling contradiction to an already grim story.