YouTube bans Ruby Franke, deletes her channels following child abuse arrest
YouTube has banned Ruby Franke and deleted all of her channels following her arrest for aggravated child abuse, Page Six has confirmed.
“We can confirm that we have terminated two channels linked to Ruby Franke in accordance with our creator responsibility guidelines,” YouTube spokesman Jack Malon said in a statement to Page Six.
YouTube also confirmed that it removed two of the “8 Passengers” host’s channels following statements from law enforcement after she was taken into custody.
The momfluencer will also no longer be able to use, own, or create any other YouTube channels, in accordance with the repeat infringer policy in YouTube’s Terms of Service.
Should a new channel attempt to upload material from a deleted one, YouTube will remove the new content and terminate the channel.
Franke, 41, was arrested in Utah on Aug. 30 on two counts of aggravated child abuse; however, she’s since been slapped with four additional counts of child abuse.
The YouTube personality, who first sparked concern among viewers after her son said in a video that he had to sleep on a beanbag for seven months after losing his bedroom, is being held behind bars without bail.
Ruby Franke arrest: What you need to know
Ruby Franke was a “momfluencer” who had one of YouTube’s biggest channels, “8 Passengers,” which documented her and her husband, Kevin, and their six kids.
Franke was arrested on Aug. 30, 2023, on two counts of aggravated child abuse and could face up to 15 years in prison if convicted.
Franke’s arrest came after an emaciated child with duct tape around their extremities escaped and ran to a neighbor’s house for help.
Franke’s sisters released a joint statement saying they did everything they could to protect their nieces and nephews “behind the public scene” and that the arrest “needed to happen.”
Through a lawyer, Franke’s husband denied having any part in the abuse.
Franke in court accused one of her own children of sexually abusing a sibling for years.
YouTube has deleted Franke’s account and banned her from the platform.
Police arrested Franke and her business partner, Jodi Hildebrandt, after one of the vlogger’s six kids escaped Hildebrandt’s house through a window and sought out a neighbor for food and water.
Describing the child as “emaciated” and bound with duct tape, the neighbor called authorities who discovered another malnourished child. Both were rushed to the hospital for treatment, and Franke and Hildebrandt were taken into custody.
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Franke’s sisters released a joint statement to social media following the arrest, stating justice “needed to happen.”
“For the last 3 years we have kept quiet on the subject of our sister Ruby Franke for the sake of her children. Behind the public scene we have done everything we could to try and make sure the kids were safe,” the statement began.
“Ruby was arrested which needed to happen. Jodi was arrested which needed to happen,” the sisters continued.
“The kids are now safe, which is the number one priority.”
Franke’s husband, Kevin, who remains married to the disgraced YouTuber, said in a statement via his attorney that his “urgent focus is simply to keep his children together under his fatherly care.”
She will make her initial court appearance on Friday, Sept. 8.
