Harrowing phone call Ruby Franke’s daughter made to police to report horrific abuse revealed for first time

In August 2023, Shari Franke witnessed her mother, former YouTube star Ruby, being convicted in court for extreme child abuse.

Almost a year earlier, the 22-year-old had attempted to report the torturous physical punishments that 43-year-old Ruby would inflict upon her four younger siblings to the police - to no avail.

This week, however, following the release of a harrowing true crime documentary detailing the ex-parenting influencer's fall from grace, the heartbreaking initial phone call Shari first made to Springville Police Station to report the abuse has been heard for the very first time.

Who is Ruby Franke?

By June 2020, Utah-based mother-of-six Ruby Franke was considered one of the most popular family influencers in the US.

Alongside her husband, Kevin, and their kids, she'd upload 'daily life' vlogs to a YouTube channel called '8 Passengers' - referring to her brood's journey through life.

The millions of viewers watching Ruby's videos from home had no idea, however, that her children were being exploited behind the scenes in a bid to accumulate fame and fortune.

"Our entire schedule revolved around YouTube," Shari says in the Hulu documentary, Devil In The Family: The Fall of Ruby Franke.

Her brother and Ruby's eldest son, Chad, adds: "There were times that she blew up off camera.

"She would spank, whip, take the belt out and whip my butt. You know, pull down my pants, you know, whip me."

By 2021, however, Ruby had been 'cancelled' for sharing a controversial video on social media that heard Chad revealing he'd recently been made to sleep on a beanbag for seven months, after losing his bedroom privileges.

Soon afterwards, Ruby turned her attention to Mormon therapist, fellow Christian, and Utah local Jodi Hildebrandt, and the pair partnered up to present their ConneXions podcast - upon which their unnerving views on parenting were voiced.

This move, her eldest two children and husband Kevin say, prompted Ruby's downfall.

Initial abuse concerns

Neighbours of the family also recall in the series that, after Kevin and Chad were kicked out of the Franke home, Shari was disowned, and Jodi was moved in, Ruby's car was often missing for several days at a time.

During these periods, podcast episodes filmed from Hildebrandt's home, a four-hour drive away ,were being released.

"These kids were home alone," Lisa McClean told producers. "These were once very bubbly children - now, they were withdrawn.

"It almost seemed like, no joy."

Another neighbour, Sydney Condie added: "You'd see little faces in the window when you walked by, and that same face would be peering out the window hours later when you walked by again."

In September 2022, after McClean alerted Shari of her concerns over Ruby's two youngest children, the eldest daughter contacted Springville Police Station.

Shari Franke contacts police

A recording of Shari's call has been shared on the documentary for the first time.

"Hi, my name is Shari Franke", she begins in the audio. "My four younger siblings are living in Springville, and my neighbours have been telling me that they'd been left home alone.

"And so, I was curious if someone could go check on them."

The officer at the other end of the line then asks: "Have you spoken with your parents?"

"Erm, they've cut me off", Shari admits. "So, we're not really on speaking terms."

The cop then replies: "I can have you speak to an officer regarding that."

Police prepared to conduct a welfare check on the youngest Franke children, and McClean and Condie were asked to be interviewed as witnesses.

Unfortunately for Shari, however, the officers were forced to leave the property after no one answered the door.

They hadn't obtained a warrant, as a judge had allegedly refused to sign off on it.

A child protection officer later closed the initial case, after neighbours admitted to not having seen physical signs of abuse by this point.

"I realise, I should have lied, and told them that the kids were being harmed and I could see it," another of Ruby's next-door neighbours, Kristen Collard, confesses in the documentary.

"I really regret not saying that."

Ruby is arrested

It took a further 10 months for Ruby Franke and Jodi Hildebrandt to be apprehended by police.

In August 2023, while the former vlogger was away from the property, her youngest son, 12, escaped from Hildebrandt's home, and called upon a neighbour to ask for a ride to the police station.

Severely 'emaciated', the youngster had visible marks and wounds from duct tape put around his ankles.

Police and members of the Santa Clara Public Safety Department found his nine-year-old sister in a 'similar physical condition of malnourishment' in Hildebrandt's house, with a shaved head and visible injuries.

Ruby later told officers said the two children were 'evil and possessed', having admitted to denying them of both food and water on several occasions, handcuffing her son's wrists and ankles and holding him underwater.

On 20 February 2024, Hildebrandt and Franke were convicted and given four separate prison sentences of one to 15 years, with the length of each sentence decided by the Utah Board of Pardons and Parole. Due to a law in the area, their sentences are capped at a maximum of 30 years.

Devil In The Family: The Fall of Ruby Franke is now available to stream on Hulu.