Greg Allen and his wife Dara Llorens were having some significant marital difficulties. It hadn't always been that way but three years after their daughter Sabrina was born, things began to take a turn for the worst.
The subsequent divorce was inevitable and so was the ensuing custody battle. Little did Greg know, that his newly ex-wife was planning on doing anything, even resorting to desperate measures to ensure that she was Sabrina's only guardian...Court Ruling
Greg
Allen, a respected engineering research scientist at the University of
Texas, had lived in Austin, Texas with his wife Dara for several years
before the divorce. The judge who presided over their custody hearing
had seen that Dara was unstable, and ruled that Greg would maintain
major custody.
Warning Signs
Greg
had seen the warning signs from a mile off. After all, his wife’s
behavior towards him had become much more hateful and erratic towards
the end of their marriage and all the way through the custody
proceedings. Still, he believed that she legitimately cared about their
daughter and deserved to see her, at least on weekends...
Poisoning Her
Little
did Greg know, that his sinister ex-wife had already begun to poison
his beloved daughter’s mind against him. Sabrina came home with strange
stories, relaying lies that her mother had told her to say about her
father. First it was that Greg hit Dara, then, that he abused his
daughter as well.
Allegations Fly
These
allegations of child abuse were eventually brought to the attention of
Child Protection Services, who took Sabrina out of school one day. They
took her to a safe place and asked her questions about her daddy
touching her inappropriately. Her reply was ultimately exonerating, but
also very telling of Dara’s intentions: "My daddy hits my mommy, that’s a
lie my mommy told me to say..."
Threats
In
addition to the allegations Dara wasn’t shy about threatening to take
Sabrina away from her father entirely. She even told family members that
she had plans to take the little girl with her to Mexico, where Greg
could never reach them. When he found out, he alerted the family court
but was told that they could do nothing until a move was made.
Things Improve
Then,
most unexpectedly, the couple’s relationship seemed to improve. Despite
the frequent issues Dara had brought up with visiting arrangements in
the past, she suddenly seemed to have no problems. It seemed to Greg
that Dara had finally pulled herself together and wanted to make amends.
He couldn’t have been more wrong...
Last Drop Off
At
6 pm, on Friday April 19, 2002, Greg dropped Sabrina off for what would
be the last time. He kissed her goodbye and said "daddy don’t ever
forget me.” Greg wasn’t sure what that meant, but he thought maybe she
was just worried about what her mother had been talking about many weeks
before her change of heart.
Sabrina Knew
“She
had been having an upset stomach when I dropped her off for last couple
of visits although Dara was being nice. It was obvious that Sabrina was
nervous,” explained Greg Allen. “It’s obvious now that she knew that
she was going to come.” The next day, Dara wasn’t answering her phone...
On the Run
It
was less than two hours later that Greg reached out to police, but it
was already two late. The mentally-unstable mother had apparently paid
somebody she worked with to drop her and Sabrina at a bus station. From
there, they easily made their way into Mexico. Four-year-old Sabrina
Allen, was gone.
No Help, Whatsoever
Despite
warnings from the American police, Mexican authorities were unable to
act quickly enough to capture the renegade mother. This failure
effectively condemned Sabrina to live on the run with her fugitive
mother. Still, Greg wasn’t about to give up. He was determined to get
his little girl back...
Life Savings
Greg
Allen couldn’t wait for law enforcement to work, not at the pace their
were going. Instead, he hired a private investigator to search for his
little girl. He spent his life savings on the PI, but it proved to be
worth it. He had tracked Sabrina and her mother to Laredo, a Mexican
city bordering on the south of Texas.
Changing Her
Meanwhile,
Dara had forced little Sabrina to dye her hair and even to assume a new
identity. She slowly taught her Spanish, hoping to eliminate her
English speaking altogether. Constantly on the move, Sabrina felt both
bewildered and isolated. And all the while, Greg was looking for her…
So Close
It
had taken the PI several years to find Dara in Laredo but before Greg
could travel to Mexico, he needed to take some time off work. He also
needed to learn Spanish. He traveled to Mexico City and took an
intensive course in Spanish. Little did he know that Sabrina was a mere
30-minute drive away.
Teacher Confidant
At
the same time that Greg was learning Spanish in Mexico city, Sabrina
was asking her teacher to help her find her dad. One father’s day,
Sabrina confessed that she missed her dad stating, “I do have a dad. My
real name is not Blanca my real name is Sabrina. My dad’s name is Greg
and he lives in Texas.” And she even had more to say on the subject...
On the Internet
Sabrina
had just turned six when she told her teacher to look for her dad on
the internet. She said, "He lives in Texas help me find him. I’m
supposed to live with him. He has my picture on the internet.” Despite
everything, she knew her father was looking for her, but she couldn’t
escape.
New Love Blooms
Yet
by the time Greg made it to the city where Sabrina was staying, she was
gone again. It was upon his return to Mexico City that he met his
future wife. Mariana knew him from his time in the city and helped
support him through his disappointment. She wanted to help him heal and
make sure that he found his daughter, no matter what...
Girl on TV
The
case of missing Sabrina and her fugitive mother was featured twice on
America’s Most Wanted and a $20,000 reward was posted for information
leading to her rescue. Over the next 11 years, Greg found himself facing
setback after setback. Yet still he persisted, as much as any man can.
Then, finally, a new lead presented itself.
Tracking Her Down
In
Late September of 2014, authorities finally tracked down Dara Llorens
and Sabrina in Mexico City. Dara, she was arrested and sent to prison
for aggravated kidnapping. Apparently she had undergone some degree of
plastic surgery to prevent herself from being recognized. Sabrina was
brought back to the US and placed in a hospital for observation...
Deep Scars
Though
she was physically healthy, 17-year-old Sabrina is still reeling from
over a decade of psychological trauma she suffered at the hands of her
manic mother. Her mother’s poison words have dug deep and she bears a
hatred for her father that even she can’t fully explain. Of course, she
is a teenager too, so there’s still hope.
Refusing Her Father
At
first, she refused to see her father outright, but specialists and
therapists are helping her to come to terms with the shock of what
happened and reclaiming the life she lost. But, Gary Allen is a patient
man, he knows she’ll come around someday. "She needs time to relax and
just be a kid," he says.
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