Gabrielle disappeared from Fort Lauderdale, Florida on August 2, 2010. She was abducted by her non-custodial mother, Leslie Sheila Delbecq. Leslie and Gabrielle's father, Christopher Dahm, finalized their divorce in June 2010, after a marriage of less than two years. They had joint custody of Gabrielle and neither of them was supposed to take the child out of the country without permission. Leslie failed to return Gabrielle after a visitation, and Christopher learned his ex-wife had purchased three one-way tickets to the United Arab Emirates, via Brussels, Belgium: one for herself, one for her mother and one for Gabrielle.

Gabrielle does not have a United States passport, apparently Leslie got a Belgian passport for her without Christopher's knowledge. Leslie, who was born in Michigan, has dual citizenship in Belgium and the United States. Her parents, who are both French-speaking Belgian citizens, moved to the United Arab Emirates in 2005, after her father got a job with Etihad Airways. They live in the nation's capital of Abu Dhabi. The State Department confirmed that Gabrielle was there as well.

In August 2011, a full year after Gabrielle's disappearance, Leslie and her mother, Jeanine De Riddere, and father, Philippe Delbecq, were indicted for international parental kidnapping. Federal warrants were issued for Leslie and Jeanine on June 21, 2011. If any of them attempt to travel internationally, they will be arrested. Christopher has gotten full custody of Gabrielle in the United States and is working to bring her home.

Photographs and vital statistics for Leslie and Jeanine are posted below this case summary. Photographs and information for Philippe are unavailable. Gabrielle's case remains unsolved.