Franke

Ruby Franke is at the heart of tonight’s BBC true crime doc The Devil in the Family.

A BBC true crime doc investigates the truth behind the case of Ruby Franke.

The Devil in the Family: The Fall of Ruby Franke aired this evening, Thursday, August 6, on BBC Two, with the three-part special investigating the life and crimes of Franke.

Speaking to those who knew the 44-year-old best, this third episode delves into the truth which “proves far worse than anyone imagined”.

Who is Ruby Franke?

Ruby Franke is an American former family vlogger who ran the controversial YouTube channel 8 Passengers.

She started the channel in 2015 and ran it with her then-husband Kevin, documenting their lives with their six children with 8 Passengers attracting almost three million subscribers.

While it was popular, 8 Passengers received plenty of online criticism as it promoted strict parenting rules and harsh disciplinary tactics. When the channel started to decline, and was eventually suspended, Franke teamed up with mental health counsellor Jodi Hildebrandt.

Together, they launched their joint Instagram profile and podcast Moms of Truth which similarly talked about extreme parenting but also the idea that children who didn’t follow their rules were possessed or acting under dark influences.

Franke and Hildebrandt were also business partners who ran an online life-coaching service named ConneXions.

In August 2023, Franke was arrested after her 12-year-old son escaped a home in Utah, now known to be Hildebrandt’s, and asked a neighbour for help.

Police discovered that her two youngest children were extremely malnourished with physical injuries and bondage wounds.

Franke pleaded guilty to four counts of aggravated child abuse and was sentenced to four prison terms of one to 15 years each to run consecutively.

This means she will serve a total prison sentence of four to 30 years which was the maximum penalty under Utah law. Hildebrandt also received this sentence for her involvement in the abuse.

The Devil in the Family: The Fall of Ruby Franke is available to watch on BBC iPlayer.

Need to know

The YouTube family vlogger is the subject of shocking documentary The Devil in the Family: The Fall of Ruby Franke, which aired on BBC Two last night.

What happened to Ruby Franke? Everything you need to know

1. The Devil in the Family: The Fall of Ruby Franke aired on BBC Two last night, examining the disturbing case of the disgraced parenting influencer.
2. Franke launched her YouTube channel 8 Passengers in 2015, sharing controversial parenting advice that “began to raise eyebrows among her fans, leading to complaints and calls to police”.
3. The full extent of her abuse came to light when her malnourished 12-year-old son escaped through a window and fled to neighbours desperately seeking food and water. Police records revealed the boy had lacerations on his wrists and ankles consistent with having been bound with rope.
4. Franke had partnered with family counsellor Jodi Hildebrandt, who believed the children were “evil and possessed by demons”. Both the 12-year-old and his nine-year-old sister were held captive in Hildebrandt’s Utah home.
5. Both women were arrested in August 2023 and convicted of four counts of aggravated child abuse. They each received sentences of four to 30 years and are currently incarcerated at Utah State Correctional Facility. Franke’s initial parole hearing is scheduled for December 2026.
6. In November 2023, Franke’s husband Kevin Franke filed for divorce following over a year of separation. Following Franke’s conviction, her children were placed in protective custody, but her ex-husband has now been granted full custody and he has since remarried.

READ THE FULL STORY: Where is Ruby Franke now?