- New details have emerged around the former parenting YouTuber Ruby Franke and her children.
- In a search warrant, Utah police said that her 10-year-old son claimed Jodi Hildebrandt tied him up.
Ruby Franke, a former parenting YouTuber, and her business partner Jodi Hildebrandt were accused of tying up Franke's 12-year-old son with ropes and later treating his wounds with cayenne pepper and honey, according to a new search warrant.
Hildebrandt and Franke were both charged with six felony counts of child abuse, with the charges relating to the abuse of Franke's 10-year-old daughter and 12-year-old son.
In the warrant, obtained by The Salt Lake Tribune, police said that Franke's 12-year-old son escaped on August 30 after being tied up in ropes at Hildebrandt's Ivins, Utah home, and told authorities that Hildebrandt had tied him up.
The boy also told police that the pair treated wounds on his body with cayenne pepper and honey as further grim allegations emerge about the formerly popular YouTubers, according to the Associated Press.
Police found bowls containing a paste made of honey and cayenne pepper, as well as a locked room in the basement, three ropes, two handcuffs, bandages, plastic wrap, a journal, and some paperwork, per the AP.
Court documents reviewed by Insider previously showed that Utah police had at least five interactions connected to Franke in the years leading up to her August arrest on six felony counts of child abuse.
When Franke's son escaped to neighbors, police said in the search warrant that he "appeared to be emaciated" and was "abnormally thin and weak," according to the Salt Lake Tribune. Franke's children have since been placed in state custody, the Tribune reported.
Franke and Hildebrandt achieved online success with the 8 Passengers YouTube channel, which began in 2015 and peaked at about 2.5 million subscribers. The channel was shut down in 2023.
The two women have yet to enter pleas in the case. Attorneys for Franke and Hildebrandt did not immediately return Insider's requests for comment.
The Santa Clara-Ivins City Police Department did not respond to Insider's request for the warrants on Thursday.