Family vlogger Ruby Franke charged with six counts of child abuse

Washington County, Utah - Family vlogger Ruby Franke, creator of the YouTube channel 8 Passengers, has been charged with six counts of felony child abuse.

YouTube vlogger Ruby Franke has been charged with six felony counts of child abuse.
YouTube vlogger Ruby Franke has been charged with six felony counts of child abuse.  © Collage: Screenshot/Instagram/moms_of_truth

On Wednesday, Ruby Franke and her business partner, Jodi Hildebrandt, were charged with six felony counts of aggravated child abuse, per NPR.

The two women were arrested last week after Franke's 12-year-old son escaped a window and ran to a neighbor's house asking for food and water.

The neighbor notified the police after finding duct tape around the kid's ankles and wrists. The responding officer said the boy appeared severely malnourished and had "deep lacerations" from being tied up.

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Upon searching Hildebrandt's home, officers found Franke's 10-year-old daughter in a similar malnourished condition. The two children went to the hospital for treatment. Franke's four youngest children are now in the care of Utah's Child and Family Services, as her two eldest are legal adults.

When Franke was arrested, her sisters, who are also family influencers, took to Instagram in a joint post to say, "Ruby was arrested which needed to happen."

"The kids are now safe, which is the number one priority."

Who is YouTube vlogger Ruby Franke?

Ruby Franke (r) and her business partner, Jodi Hildebrandt, were both charged with felonies for child abuse Wednesday.
Ruby Franke (r) and her business partner, Jodi Hildebrandt, were both charged with felonies for child abuse Wednesday.  © Screenshot/Instagram/moms_of_truth

Franke launched her YouTube channel, 8 Passengers, in 2015. At its peak, the vlog boasted some 2.3 million subscribers who followed her life as a mother of six children and wife to her husband, Kevin.

Earlier this year, the channel was taken down as widespread criticism of Franke's extremely strict parenting style increased.

One of her tactics was to threaten to take away meals and even beds, with critics claiming that Ruby openly abused her children in front of her followers.

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Others accused her of being part of a growing group of content creators who forced their underage children to trade their privacy for their parents' financial gain.

After 8 Passengers was taken down, Franke started working with Hildebrandt on ConneXions, a mental health counseling service that was also facing harsh public criticism for its parenting advice.

Franke and Hildebrandt are still in custody as of Thursday, according to records for the Washington County Sheriff's office.

Cover photo: Collage: Screenshot/Instagram/moms_of_truth

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