Police records of a search warrant reveal chilling new claims in the case of parenting YouTuber Ruby Franke, who has been accused of abusing her children.
Mom-of-six Franke, who ran the popular YouTube channel '8 Passengers' with her husband, has been charged along with her business partner Jodi Hildebrandt with six felony counts of child abuse.
The charges came after Franke's 12-year-old son climbed out of a window and ran to a neighbor's house in Utah to ask for food and water, according to police documents.
The neighbors called police when they saw the boy had duct tape on his ankles and appeared to be malnourished.
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Newly released records reveal that the 12-year-old told police Hildebrandt's business partner had tied him down with rope before he managed to escape.
The boy was described as being 'emaciated' and 'abnormally thin and weak' when officers arrived at the scene.
After inspecting the area which had been duct-taped, police found open wounds on the boy's body.
The child claimed 'they', seemingly referencing Franke and Hildebrant, had put cayenne pepper and honey on the wounds, according to the records cited by The Salt Lake Tribune.
Officers then conducted a 'sweep' at Hildebrandt’s home and found Franke's 10-year-old daughter, who also appeared to be malnourished was allegedly 'reluctant to speak to officers'. Police determined Franke had left three of her children in Hildebrandt’s care, though it’s unclear for how long.
In the search, police also found what appeared to be a locked safe room in the basement, prompting them to request a search warrant for evidence related to child abuse.
Records of the search warrant reveal that police confiscated two pairs of handcuffs, tape, Saran wrap, at least three ropes, and absorbent dressings and bandages from the home. They are also found bowls containing what is believed to be a paste made of honey and cayenne pepper.
They also executed a search warrant for any electronic devices which may have been used to record abuse or injuries sustained from abuse.
Court documents have claimed that two days before the boy's encounter with neighbors, a video posted on YouTube showed Franke in Hildebrandt’s home.
Investigators consider this footage evidence that Franke had recently been in the home and knew about the apparent abuse taking place.
Both the 10-year-old girl and the 12-year-old boy were taken to a hospital for medical treatment after the boy's encounter with neighbors.
They, along with two of Franke’s other children, have since been placed in state custody.
Franke and Hildebrandt, who has been a licensed clinical mental health counselor in Utah since 2005, are being held without bail in Washington County.
Emily Brown