Ruby Franke's 'Petrified' Daughter Wouldn't Leave Closet for 4 Hours Before Rescuing Police Coaxed Her Out
The 9-year-old girl sat very still as officers told her she was safe
Newly released bodycam footage reveals how the daughter of Ruby Franke was “petrified” and remained in a closet for four hours after police found her upon searching the Ivins, Utah, home of Jodi Hildebrandt.
The Washington County Attorney’s Office released a trove of evidence in the Franke case, reviewed by PEOPLE, including video of police finding her 9-year-old daughter, referred to by the initial “E, ” sitting extremely still, alone in a dark closet.
Police were alerted to the home after Franke’s 12-year-old son, identified as “R.F.” in court documents, escaped on Aug. 30 and went to a neighbor, who called for help.
In one clip, two police officers are checking different rooms in the house, when they come upon E, sitting silently and cross-legged in a large, empty closet.
One of the officers identifies himself as police, while the other asks the girl, wearing oversized clothing and looking very thin, if she is OK. She doesn’t respond as the officers continue to try to coax her out of the closet.
“The officers responded to Ms. Hildebrandt’s home, placed her under arrest, and conducted a search of her sizable property where they found Ms. Franke’s 9-year-old daughter, petrified and hiding in a closet,” the county attorney’s office said in a statement regarding the evidence release.
Based on timestamps from the slew of videos released, the girl sat in the closet for nearly four hours, hardly moving and saying few words. Various first responders, including police officers and EMTs, attempt to engage with the girl to assure her she would be in safe hands if she decided to leave the room.
After nearly two hours in the room, the girl is brought a personal pizza and a drink, while officers play music, including Maroon 5’s “Payphone,” in an apparent attempt to make her more comfortable.
The girl seemed hesitant to eat the food at first, and continued to sit still even after it was brought to her.
“You’re more than welcome to eat,” someone off camera can be heard telling the girl. “That’s all you.”
The girl then pulls the pizza box toward her and begins eating.
A third clip shows two first responders sitting on the floor with the girl, again reassuring her that they are there to help her.
“We promise,” one of the EMTs tells the girl. “Pinky promise.”
“We helped your brother,” the other reassures E. “We want to get you some help too.”
Shortly after, the girl stands up and slowly walks out of the closet under her own power.
Ruby Franke, who gained a following with her parenting YouTube channel “8Passengers.” was arrested along with her podcasting partner, Hildebrandt. Both were charged with aggravated child abuse and have since pleaded guilty and were sentenced to up to 30 years in prison.
Prosecutors say Franke and Hildebrandt kept the former’s two youngest children in a “work-camp like setting.” The two were often denied food, water, beds and almost all forms of entertainment, the attorney’s office said.
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“They were forced to do physical tasks like carrying loaded boxes up and down stairs and ‘sitting’ against a wall without a chair or stool for hours at a time,” the statement says. “The children were also forced to do manual labor outdoors in the extreme summer heat without shoes or socks. They were similarly forced to stand outside, on a cement patio, in the summer heat for hours and even days.”
The children were also beaten, while Franke’s son was also bound after a previous escape attempt. Prosecutors attributed the abuse to “religious extremism,” and that the children were taught to “repent for imagined ‘sins.’”
If you suspect child abuse, call the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child or 1-800-422-4453, or go to www.childhelp.org. All calls are toll-free and confidential. The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages.
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