YouTube mum Ruby Franke's ex-husband gives stark warning on dangers of social media after wife jailed for abuse
Ruby Franke's husband made some honest admissions during an interview with Good Morning America today (25 February) as he spoke ahead of the release of a new documentary outlining the shocking child abuse at the hands of his ex wife.
Kevin Franke has spoken out for the first time since the disgraced YouTuber's arrest, and focused on the use of social media particularly, and how it can be dangerous.
Franke, 43, was arrested in August 2023 along with family therapist Jodi Hildebrandt, 55, in August 2023.
Both have since been sentenced to four counts of one to 15 years in prison for aggravated child abuse, which can only add up to a maximum of 30 years, due to a Utah law on capping consecutive sentences.
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Franke's 12-year-old son managed to escape the property with duct tape around his ankles and wrists while covered in several wounds, and told a neighbour what was happening in the home.
With over one billion views on the family's YouTube channel, Ruby's arrest made headlines across the US.
After pleading guilty and being put behind bars, a documentary on the chilling case titled Devil in the Family: The Fall of Ruby Franke is set to be released on Hulu on 27 February.
Kevin appeared on Good Morning America (GMA) with his eldest son, Chad, and spoke about his ex's actions for the first time.
The couple met in 2000, and share six children. Kevin admitted that he's still in love with Ruby, despite not forgiving her for what she did to their kids.
Speaking in the interview, he highlighted: "I want people to know that there is real danger when you place yourself or your family or children out onto public social media."
Outlining that 'there are real consequences' when you make that decision, he added: “I want people to know that, to be just careful with who they choose to follow, with who they choose to put on a pedestal and to put their faith and to put their trust in.
“Because if you put your trust in the wrong person, it can have massive consequences in your life."
Franke often posted parenting advice on her channel, and her son Chad said that while he had 'fond memories' of his childhood, everything changed when 'companies started coming to us offering big money for scripts'.
Labelling the experience 'chaotic' with 'lots of time outs in the corner', Kevin and Chad agreed that when Ruby's business partner, Jodi, got involved, the family dynamic changed even more.
Kevin recalled: "She came across as somebody who was firm and very authoritative, and so we thought, this is the perfect fit.
"What became surprising to me was when the focus gradually shifted away from just solely on our children to us as a couple," he said.
Chad weighed in with what he thought of the therapist, saying that he even 'treated her as a God', as he 'trusted her so much'.
Kevin admitted he was pushed out of his family home by Ruby and Jodi as they cut him off from his family and accused him of having an 'addiction to selfishness'.
Speaking about his decision to trust the counsellor, he stated: "The bottom line is that I was choosing to trust a licensed professional mental health counsellor and my wife, and they gave some terrible counsel."
Full timeline of the Ruby Franke case
Starting a YouTube channel and initial suspicions
Franke started her parenting YouTube channel 8 Passengers with now ex-husband Kevin, amassing over 2.5 million subscribers before it was deleted in 2023 following the arrest.
Several subscribers became suspicious of child abuse, with a petition being signed for the police to investigate the family, citing the numerous questionable videos uploaded.
Franke joins ConneXions with Jodi Hildebrandt
The mum told critics in a 2021 interview for The Wrap that she was showing everyone 'what a responsible mother looks like'.
She stopped uploading videos to the channel in 2022, joining Mormon therapist Hildebrandt's ConneXions podcast.
Their divisive opinions on subjects such as eating disorders, blaming rape victims, and criticising immigrants drew the wrong kind of attention.
Franke and Hildebrandt's arrest
Franke and Hildebrandt were arrested on child abuse charges in August 2023.
The Santa Clara Public Safety Department were called to the Ivins neighbourhood in Utah after a neighbour was alerted by Franke's 'emaciated' 12-year-old son, who escaped to knock on their door to ask for help.
He had visible marks and wounds from duct tape put around his ankles, and asked for some food and water.
Police found his 10-year-old sister in a 'similar physical condition of malnourishment' in Hildebrandt's house.
Family members speak out
Franke's oldest daughter, Shari, wrote on Instagram on the day of the arrests: “Today has been a big day."
She continued: "Me and my family are so glad justice is being served. We've been trying to tell the police and CPS for years about this, and so glad they finally decided to step up."
In November, Kevin also officially filed for divorce from Franke, and called her actions to their children 'horrific and inhumane'.
Franke and Hildebrandt are charged with six counts of child abuse
Just one week after their arrests, the pair were charged with six counts of felony child abuse.
YouTube banned Franke, deleting both 8 Passengers and ConneXions channels and blocking her from the social media platform.
Franke blames the abuse on Hildebrandt
Her attorneys released a statement that said: “Initially, Ms. Franke believed that Jodi Hildebrandt had the insight to offer a path to continual improvement. Ms. Hildebrandt took advantage of this quest and twisted it into something heinous," according to Fox13.
It blamed Hildebrandt solely for isolating Franke from her family completely, distorting her morality.
Franke pleads guilty
Just three days after the statement was released, Franke pleaded guilty to four counts of aggravated child abuse. A court had heard how she had tried to convince her youngest children they were 'evil and possessed'.
Franke and Hildebrandt are sentenced to prison for child abuse
On 20 February 2024, Franke and Hildebrandt were convicted and given four separate prison sentences for one to 15 years, with the length of each sentence decided by the Utah Board of Pardons and Parole.
During sentencing Franke apologised to her children and said she would 'never stop crying for hurting their tender souls'.
She said: "My willingness to sacrifice all for you was masterfully manipulated into something very ugly.
"I took from you all that was soft and safe and good."
The two women will not serve more than 30 years in a Federal Penitentiary because of a Utah law about consecutive sentences.
If you’ve been affected by any of these issues and want to speak to someone in confidence regarding the welfare of a child, contact the NSPCC on 0808 800 5000, 10am-8pm Monday to Friday. If you are a child seeking advice and support, call Childline for free on 0800 1111, 24/7.
Topics: Social Media, Parenting, YouTube, Documentaries, Ruby Franke, US News
Joshua Nair