SPRINGVILLE, Utah (ABC4) – According to police documents obtained by ABC4, “8 Passengers” YouTube vlogger Ruby Franke hired a private investigator in 2020 to investigate phone calls and text messages she deemed threatening.
Franke has made headlines in the last two weeks after being arrested, along with her business partner Jodi Hildebrandt, and charged with 6 counts of aggravated child abuse. Franke and Hildebrandt were famous for their parenting and lifestyle tips given through various social media platforms.
There have been numerous websites and social media accounts that have been dedicated to criticism of Franke and Hildebrandt’s shows. Following their arrest last week, thousands of comments on posts around the web were in support of the arrest with many expressing surprise it had not happened earlier.
The documents ABC4 obtained show that there have been numerous visits to the Franke home over the years some involving reports of neglect and documents reporting harassment of the Frankes.
In April 2020, Springville Police reported speaking with Franke on the phone regarding threatening messages she had been receiving.
The documents state Franke told the officer she had received messages from someone she believed watched her YouTube show. She had received a text message that said the sender was “going to take her family down and there will be riots at their door when the world finds out the truth.”
The sender went on to tell Franke not to let her children outside unsupervised and that she should stop posting on social media for a week. Franke told the officer she did not know who was sending the messages but was able to provide the phone number of the sender. Police did make contact with the sender but when they inquired as to their identity the female on the line said “This is Ruby Franke” and then hung up.
During the conversation with Franke, police ascertained that she had hired a private investigator to look into the calls and texts. Police made contact with the private investigator the next day and he informed police the messages had not stopped.
Police then spoke again to the private investigator in August 2020, who provided police with transcripts of the texts Franke had been receiving. The officer included in the report that an individual had been photographed ringing the doorbell of the Franke home and running off, but police were unable to identify the individual.
Police did complete an investigative subpoena and submitted it to the Utah County Attorney’s Office but were told there was not enough subscriber information on the phone or suspect information to issue a subpoena or warrant for the case. The SPDP closed the case shortly after.
ABC4 has reached out to the private investigator to see if there is any more information on the case but has not heard back from them at the time of this article. We will update information as it becomes available.
