Kevin Franke, husband of YouTube vlogger Ruby Franke, is suing former business partner Jodi Hildebrandt over abuse by two women of two of the couple’s four children. woke up. Franke is seeking a jury trial and unspecified damages.
He is accusing Hildebrandt, the founder of Connections Classroom, of emotional distress and neglect of his 11-year-old son and 9-year-old daughter by abusing him and their children, who are not named in the lawsuit. has not been disclosed.
Kevin Franke claims his wife moved their four minor children to Hildebrandt’s Utah home on or about May 22, 2023, without notifying Hildebrandt. Kevin Franke filed for divorce from Ruby Franke in November 2023.
Ruby Franke and Hildebrandt each pleaded guilty in December to four counts of child abuse in court in Washington County, Utah.
In their plea agreements, Mr. Franke and Mr. Hildebrandt admitted that between May 2023 and August 2023, another adult caused or caused serious injury to Mr. Franke’s children.
Both were sentenced to four consecutive terms of one to 15 years in prison. The length of time they spend in prison is at the discretion of the Utah Board of Pardons and Parole.
children were found
Franke’s son was able to escape from the house in late August 2023 and seek help from a neighbor. The boy was convinced he would go to jail if he ran away, so he asked a neighbor to call police so he could be taken to jail, according to the complaint.
The boy was treated by first responders and hospitalized for severe malnutrition and treatment for severe injuries and injuries, according to the complaint.
Police found the second child sitting on the floor of Hildebrandt’s closet, according to the complaint. According to the complaint, she was so “traumatized and fearful that she would lose contact” with law enforcement and first responders who found her.
She came out of the closet hours after she was secured and only after eating an entire pizza or part of a pizza, according to the complaint. She said the girl was taken to a hospital for treatment for her injuries, malnutrition and mental condition.
The Utah Department of Children and Family Services took custody of all four Franks children and professionally addressed their emotional and psychological conditions, according to the complaint. Kevin Franke also sought treatment “to understand the children’s conditions and needs, as well as coordinate with the children’s treatment providers,” the complaint states.
“The children’s personalities, emotions, and psyches had been so damaged and altered that it was beyond the father’s ability to restore them without the professional intervention of state resources by the juvenile court. “through a rehabilitation and recovery process directed and prescribed by the professionals who treat the children,” according to the complaint.
suspected abuse
The complaint alleges that Hildebrandt unlawfully restrained the two children, “often confining them in a room in his home or in the basement of his home.” Hildebrandt is accused of causing or causing another adult to “seriously injure two children in his home.”
According to the complaint, one of the children was physically tortured and forced to do physical labor for hours or days at a time, forced to work outdoors without shoes in the summer heat, and exposed to direct sunlight for several days. It is said that he was made to stand in a place exposed to sunlight and was outside 24/7. About day and night. According to the complaint, the man suffered from repeated severe sunburns, and his “skin became blistered and discolored.”
The complaint alleges that the child was not given enough water or adequate food during the days he had to spend in the summer heat. He was also denied “all forms of entertainment, including books, notebooks, and electronic devices,” according to the complaint.
The child tried to run away in July, but said, “When I was caught, [Hildebrandt] And in Ruby’s case, he was taken home and then tied up regularly, including his hands and feet tied to multiple weights. The restraints often included two sets of handcuffs, one on his wrists and one on his ankles. ”
At times, two sets of handcuffs were tied with rope to lift his arms and legs off the ground, the complaint said. The suit said he sustained injuries from the restraints, which he treated with cayenne pepper and honey and covered with duct tape, according to the complaint.
The Franks’ daughter was also subjected to similar abuse, with the exception of restraint, according to the complaint.
According to the complaint, the two children were repeatedly told that they were evil and possessed, that they needed to repent, and that their abuse of children was an act of love.
Hildebrandt’s attorney did not immediately respond to ABC News’ request for comment.
