Ruby Franke’s ex-husband claimed he was his business partner Jodi Hildebrandt’s ‘resident exorcist’.
In a newly released interview with the Washington County Prosecutor’s Office, Kevin Franke, who has since divorced the now-disgraced mom blogger, said their Utah home became a ‘crazy house’ after Hildebrandt moved out. with them in 2021.
Jodi began living with the couple after Kevin and Ruby tried to help her fight “evil spirits” and “cast out demons.” She alleged that when she began to go into a “trance,” he would have to give her “blessings” to help her.
Kevin claimed that once he was under his roof, strange episodes of flickering lights, loud noises, and floating objects began to invade the house.
“It was weird and I hated it. I became the resident exorcist, that was the title I came up with myself; I thought it was kind of funny,” Kevin said in the interview.
Kevin Franke, who has since divorced the now-disgraced mom blogger, said their Utah home became a ‘crazy house’ after Hildebrandt moved in with them in 2021.
Jodi began living with the couple after Kevin and Ruby tried to help her fight “evil spirits” and “cast out demons.”
Ruby (pictured left), 42, was sentenced to up to 30 years in prison in February for brutally abusing her 12-year-old son and nine-year-old daughter in a “concentration camp-like environment” . Jodi (pictured right), 54, was also sentenced to up to 30 years behind bars.
Kevin claimed that his ‘job’ was to give ‘blessings’ to Jodie when ‘she began to go into a trance and take possession.’
Ruby, 42, was sentenced to up to 30 years in prison in February for brutally abusing her 12-year-old son and nine-year-old daughter in a “concentration camp-like environment.” Jodi, 54, was also sentenced to up to 30 years behind bars.
The couple became exceptionally close when Kevin said his ex-wife would come upstairs “to check on her” when Jodi had her episodes.
“It would start every four hours at night, then move every two hours at night, then move every hour at night,” Kevin said.
“At some point Ruby said, ‘You know what? I’m going to start sleeping there. And if I need you, I’ll come down and look for you.”
Kevin admitted that although he thought it was strange that his then-wife started sleeping with Jodi, he agreed.
“They started sleeping in the same bed,” Kevin shared, “then (Ruby) started having trances and stuff,” he said.
Kevin added that the couple would “lock themselves in a room for four or five hours before leaving, and Ruby would say that she “had an incredible vision” and “I wrote it down and recorded it all.” And “we have a work to do for God.” “.
The criminal ‘Momfluencer’ became an internet sensation thanks to her YouTube channel 8 Passengers, where millions of viewers watched how she and her then-husband, Kevin Franke, raised and disciplined their six children.
Ruby was already a divisive figure in the world of parenting vlogging. The Franke parents had been criticized online for banning their eldest son from her room for seven months for playing a prank on her brother.
In other videos, Ruby talked about refusing to bring lunch to a kindergartner who forgot it at home.
Last year, shocking allegations emerged that Ruby, a Mormon, had spent years abusing her children.
He said his “job” was to give Jodie “blessings” when “she started to go into a trance and take possession.”
The released images highlight the extent of Ruby’s abuse and show the two emaciated victims with infected cuts on their legs and duct tape around their arms and feet.
Disturbing photos and videos were recently released showing the horrendous injuries of Ruby’s abused children, including the moment officers found the children in a closet in her home.
Doorbell camera footage captured her son as he escaped torture and alerted a neighbor to his suffering.
Other images highlighted the extent of Ruby’s abuse and showed the two emaciated victims with infected cuts on their legs, duct tape around their arms and feet, and scratches and bruises on their bodies.
Police also discovered a small safe room in the basement of the property that was locked from the outside, with rope that would be used to tie up children and adult diapers.
Photographs taken at the scene showed the fragile bodies of the emaciated children, covered in cuts, bruises and scars.
The images show the young man’s hands and feet wrapped in duct tape, as well as infected sores on his feet that are filled with blood and pus as a result of the restraints.
The nine-year-old girl was seen with scratches all over her arms and bruise marks on her ankle.
The children were subjected to torture, such as being tied with ropes, forced to wear adult diapers, and locked in a small safe room.
They were regularly denied food, water, beds to sleep in, and virtually any form of entertainment.
Meanwhile, footage shows the kitchen and pantry were full of food and Ruby’s large office dedicated to making YouTube videos.
“The young children were forbidden to interact with others and were hidden in the house when people came to visit.”
As the children were denied food, photos emerged of a fully stocked pantry in the house.
Child Protective Services detained E and RF, along with two older brothers, after arriving at Ruby’s home to arrest her.
Investigators added that they were forced to perform manual labor outdoors in the extreme summer heat, without shoes or socks.
Both children were told that they were possessed and that the torture was done as a way to help them.
The 12-year-old boy, known as RF, told authorities that Jodi had tied him up and used home remedies to treat the injuries he suffered.
Other footage showed the moment cops found Ruby’s traumatized daughter, referred to by the initial ‘E’, found ‘petrified’ inside a closet after they swept the house.
A police officer asks the girl if she is okay, but gets no answer and tries to convince her to come out.
The children were later taken to the hospital and their relatives said they are stable.
Child Protective Services detained E and RF, along with two older brothers, after arriving at Ruby’s home to arrest her.
Ruby and Jodi were charged with six counts of felony child abuse nearly a week later, before YouTube banned Ruby and removed her channels.