Warning: This article contains discussion of child abuse which some readers may find distressing.
One of Machelle Hobson’s daughters has revealed the horrific abuse she received at the hands of her mother, including being locked in an empty room for up to 10 days at a time.
Hobson gained fame through her YouTube channel Fantastic Adventures, which she started in 2012.
At the peak of its popularity, the channel had 800,000 subscribers and brought Hobson thousands of dollars of revenue.
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Hobson was the biological mother of five children and adoptive mother of seven children. And, between 2005 and 2019, she fostered a further 40 kids.
But, behind the scenes of the family-centred channel, was a chilling reality.
In 2019, she was arrested for abusing her children after a welfare check at her home in Maricopa, Arizona.
According to a police statement, officers conducting the welfare check found seven children at the home 'who appeared to be malnourished, due to their pale completion, dark rings under their eyes, underweight, and they stated they were thirsty and hungry.'
Jordyn Downs, 29 - one of Hobson's biological children - has since spoken out about the abuse she and her siblings faced.
She says child protective services visited the home multiple times before Hobson's 2019 arrest, but she was forced to lie about their living conditions.
Jordyn, a stay-at-home mom, said: "I was forced to lie when investigators came into the home.
"My mom worked for the state, and somehow she always knew when an investigation would happen. She would sit us down and prepare us, even threaten us. She wasn’t just threatening to hurt us, she was threatening to kill us if we spoke a word wrong."
She continued: "The authorities would ask us if our mom hurt us while she sat in the room. A couple of minutes before, she was saying she would kill us; no child is going to speak up against that."
While Hobson would frequently abuse her children when they refused to perform in YouTube videos, Jordyn said the abuse started long before her mum set up the channel.
"The abuse happened my whole life. We were her puppets well before YouTube was a thought."
She shared: "Mom would tell us that nobody would believe the abuse we had faced – we were told that constantly.
"We got locked in rooms, we were threatened to have our food taken away, she would put us in the corner of the room and balance books on our heads.
"At 16 years old, I tried to take an extra bite of food and the next thing I knew, my bed was taken off me, so were my clothes, and I was never allowed to go to school."
Just months after Hobson's arrest, in November 2019, she died in Scottsdale Hospital, Arizona, after suffering a non-trauma-related brain injury.
As a result of her death, all charges made against her were dismissed.
Jordyn admitted: "I was angry when she died. I had spent my whole life trying to get justice for what she did to me.
"For her to be arrested and not even get a sentencing. I felt like death was too easy for her.
"We suffered for years, and she got eight months in jail and not even a full sentence – that is hard for me to accept."
A spokesperson from the Arizona Department of Child Safety said: "We take great measures to ensure every child is placed in the safest environment possible.
"We thoroughly investigate every report of abuse or neglect we receive.
"Our staff works tirelessly to ensure every child’s safety and well-being, yet we must acknowledge the difficult reality that those intent on harming children may occasionally slip through even the most thorough and strongest protections."
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.
Bec Oakes