Utah prosecutors have released home security video footage revealing the harrowing moment an emaciated and abused 12-year-old boy managed to escape from his mother’s business partner’s home and seek help from neighbors. Ruby Franke, a 42-year-old mommy vlogger known for her popular “8 Passengers” YouTube channel, has been accused of subjecting her son and 9-year-old daughter to severe physical and emotional abuse, including beatings, starvation, and torture.
The disturbing doorbell video, captured on August 30 last year, shows the boy, whose face is blurred in the footage, politely asking a male resident for two favors: to be taken to the nearest police station and to keep the matter confidential. Concerned by the boy’s emaciated appearance and the duct tape wrapped around his ankles and wrists, the resident immediately called 911. The boy was found to have ankle and wrist injuries, extremely thin limbs, and cuts on his arms when paramedics and authorities arrived at the scene.
Publicly released documents also include heavily redacted diary entries written by Ruby Franke, which provide chilling insights into the alleged abuse. Franke accused her children of being possessed by Satan and documented their supposed deviant behavior. The abuse was reportedly carried out in collaboration with licensed therapist Jodi Hildebrandt, who has been described as a “cult leader” by Ruby’s husband, Kevin Franke. Hildebrandt allegedly separated Kevin from his family under the guise of therapy for a pornography addiction.
Both Franke and Hildebrandt have pleaded guilty to four counts of aggravated child abuse and have been sentenced to four to 30 years in prison. Kevin Franke, who claimed to have been completely cut off from his wife and children for about a year before the arrests, was unaware of the abuse.
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