A social media influencer from California, along with her lawyer father and ex-boyfriend, is facing serious accusations of attempting to hire a hitman through the dark web. Prosecutors claim this was part of a protracted custody dispute that escalated into a sinister murder-for-hire plot targeting the father of her child.
This week, charges were brought against Gabriela Lauren Gonzalez, her attorney father Francisco Gonzalez, and her ex-boyfriend Kai Faron Cordrey by Los Angeles County prosecutors. They are accused of scheming to kill Jack Avery, a former member of the boy band “Why Don’t We,” who is the father of Gabriela’s 7-year-old daughter.
According to prosecutors, the alleged plot took shape between 2020 and 2022 amid a heated custody battle over their daughter, Lavender. Court documents claim that Gonzalez and her father frequently depicted Avery in court as “unfit, dangerous, or harmful” in an attempt to sway legal proceedings.
The criminal complaint asserts that Gabriela and Francisco Gonzalez used allegations about Avery’s parenting, coupled with their dissatisfaction with the family court’s decisions, to rationalize or support their attempts to eliminate Jack Avery from their daughter Lavender’s life.
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Gabriela Gonzalez now faces charges of attempted murder and conspiracy, as prosecutors contend she was involved in planning to have Jack Avery killed. (LA County Sheriff’s Office)
Prosecutors allege Gonzalez enlisted Cordrey to help locate a hitman through the dark web, while Francisco Gonzalez, a Central Florida attorney, allegedly financed the operation.
According to the filing, Gonzalez allegedly discussed wanting Avery dead between October 2020 and May 2021 and discussed hiring a hitman to kill him.
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Prosecutors allege Gonzalez and Cordrey discussed using the dark web and Bitcoin to hire someone to kill Avery in Los Angeles and discussed “making the killing appear to be an accident.”
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Authorities say Florida attorney Francisco Gonzalez helped finance an alleged plot to hire a hitman to kill his daughter’s ex-boyfriend. (Seminole County Sheriff’s Office)
Authorities claim Francisco Gonzalez sent Cordrey approximately $10,000 in April 2021 disguised as “web-development payments” to help locate and hire a killer. Prosecutors allege Cordrey later sought another $4,000 to continue the alleged murder-for-hire plot.
The filing alleges Cordrey transferred thousands of dollars into a Gemini cryptocurrency account as part of the scheme.
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According to prosecutors, Cordrey later allegedly pushed for Avery to be killed “within two days” and allegedly told the purported hitman the killing “did not need to be accomplished in any special way.”
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Records reviewed by Fox News Digital allege Cordrey used the alias “LizardKing69” while operating a dark-web murder-for-hire account targeting Avery. Cordrey is accused of providing Avery’s address and other identifying information to the dark-web account.
But the supposed assassin was actually an undercover FBI agent.
In September 2021, prosecutors allege Cordrey spoke with the undercover agent posing as a hitman and discussed payment, proof of death and Avery as the intended target.
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Jack Avery of Why Don’t We performs onstage during 106.1 KISS FM’s Jingle Ball 2019 at Dickies Arena on Dec. 3, 2019 in Dallas, Texas. (Photo by Cooper Neill/Getty Images for iHeartMedia)
The complaint further alleges Cordrey later told the undercover agent that Gonzalez wanted Avery killed, that he had helped arrange the plot and that “the father,” allegedly referring to Francisco Gonzalez, “still wanted it done and could pay.”
“This is a case where the defendants are accused of going to great lengths to find someone to commit murder,” Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman said in a statement. “Most fathers raise their children to respect the law, but here we have a dad who allegedly helped his daughter and her boyfriend break the law in the most sinister way imaginable.”
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Investigative records cited by FOX 35 Orlando allege Francisco Gonzalez became “deeply involved” in the custody dispute, including by allegedly hiring a private investigator to surveil Avery in hopes of finding evidence of drinking, smoking or other behavior that could be used against him in court.
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The outlet also reported investigators accused Gonzalez of threatening to have Avery arrested during visitation exchanges and attempting to involve a law enforcement contact in the dispute.
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Jack Avery of Why Don’t We performs during Power 96.1’s Jingle Ball 2019 Show on Dec. 20, 2019 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Paras Griffin/Getty Images for iHeartMedia)
TMZ reported that one witness allegedly recalled Francisco Gonzalez remarking that “it would be cheaper if Jack were dead.”
Gonzalez, who built a large social media following posting motherhood, travel and lifestyle content online, was arrested last week in Humboldt County, California, while allegedly preparing to board a flight, TMZ reported.
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Jail and arrest records reviewed by Fox News Digital show Gonzalez is being held without bail in Los Angeles County, while her father was arrested May 18 at his Lake Mary home on a California fugitive warrant tied to the alleged murder-for-hire plot. Records identify Gonzalez as a lawyer with Gonzalez Law Firm.
During his first court appearance in Florida, Francisco Gonzalez’s attorney said he planned to waive extradition and return to California to face the charges, FOX 35 Orlando reported.
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All three defendants are charged with attempted murder, conspiracy to commit murder and solicitation of murder. Prosecutors recommended bail be set at $2 million for each defendant.
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The alleged plot left Avery fearing for his life, according to both court filings and prior public comments.
“I stayed in my house for a month straight. I didn’t leave. I was so scared looking out my window every night,” Avery said during a September appearance on the “Zach Sang Show.”
Avery has since filed for a restraining order against Gonzalez and is seeking sole custody of their daughter, according to filings cited by TMZ. The filings allege Avery claimed Gonzalez “attempted to kill me by hiring a hit man.”
The investigation was initially launched by the FBI before being turned over to the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office Major Crimes Division.
Authorities have not yet explained why arrests in the case came years after the alleged murder-for-hire plot allegedly unfolded.
It was not immediately clear if any of the suspects had retained attorneys.
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