YouTube Mom Ruby Franke Arrested on Child Abuse Charges
The "8 Passengers" family vlogger has previously been reported to child protective services.
Ruby Franke, the controversial parenting advice vlogger known for her YouTube channel "8 Passengers," has been arrested. The mother of six and her business partner, Jodi Hildebrandt, were arrested in the southern Utah city of Ivins on Wednesday, Aug. 30 on six felony counts of aggravated child abuse after her "emaciated" son escaped out a window and ran to a nearby house for help.
According to a press release from the Santa Clara-Ivins Public Safety Department, the two women were arrested at Hildebrandt's house after its dispatch center received a phone call about a juvenile who "appeared to be emaciated and malnourished." The child also had "open wounds and duct tape around the extremities" and "was asking for food and water." According to authorities, the child, whose name and age were not disclosed, was transported to a local hospital due to their "severe" condition. An affidavit filed by an officer with the Santa Clara-Ivins Public Safety Department, per CBS News, revealed that the child was Franke's 12-year-old son. The affidavit added that the boy was put on a medical hold "due to his deep lacerations from being tied up with rope and from his malnourishment."
Neighbors of Ruby Franke, who was arrested this week on child abuse charges, tell @NBCNews they had long been worried for the safety of the children, and that neighbors in the community had previously alerted the Utah Division of Child and Family Services. https://t.co/HFwR2dv3NW
— NBC News (@NBCNews) September 3, 2023
After receiving information that "other juveniles in similar condition may be in a nearby home," police discovered another juvenile, identified in the affidavit as Franke's 10-year-old daughter, "in a similar physical condition of malnourishment." She was also transported to the hospital, and two other of Franke's children were placed in the custody of child protection services. At the home, police said they also found evidence "consistent with the markings found" on the first child.
Both Franke and Hildebrandt were arrested and have been charged with six counts of aggravated child abuse, Washington County Attorney Eric Clarke confirmed to Today, adding that each count carries a potential prison sentence of up to 15 years and a fine up to $10,000. CBS affiliate KUTV reported that court documents reference a YouTube video posted to Hildebrandt's channel just two days before the arrest as playing a part in both women's arrests. In the video, "Franke was seen on a YouTube video filmed in Jodi Hildebrandt's downstairs, which was posted two days ago," according to the affidavit, which adds that the video is evidence the women were "present in the home and having knowledge of the abuse, malnourishment, and neglect." Both women have been denied bail.
Franke is a mom vlogger who in 2015, along with her husband Kevin Franke, launched her YouTube channel "8 Passengers." The channel, which is no longer active and at one point reached more than 2 million followers, was controversial, with Franke receiving backlash for things like taking away her son's bed for months as a punishment and withholding Christmas presents from two of her six children. An online petition was even created asking child protective services to get involved, according to the Associated Press, and Franke's oldest daughter has since cut ties with her parents. In June 2020, viewers called child protective services on Franke and her husband after their son said in a video that he had slept on a beanbag for seven months. Franke's YouTube channel ended after seven years. It ended after seven years.