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Over several years, Youtuber Ruby Franke crafted an image of a perfect family for her 2.5 million subscribers, many of whom trusted her friendly advice on motherhood.
But that facade came tumbling down when one of her six children broke free from the home of her business partner and told the truth to a neighbour.
New footage shows the 12-year-old boy wandering the sun-baked streets of Ivins, Utah, without any shoes on as he waits for the police to arrive.
His father, Kevin, had not seen him for more than a year after Franke began a closer working relationship with therapist Jodi Hildebrandt.
The pair launched a new Youtube channel and published content on their shared Instagram page ‘Moms of Truth’, offering seminars on parenting to their fans.
In fact, Franke and Hildebrandt were collaborating on a depraved campaign of abuse in a setting described as ‘concentration camp-like’ by a prosecutor at their trial.
The victims were Franke’s two youngest children, a girl and a boy.
She would kick her son while wearing boots, while at other times she held his head under water and closed off his mouth and nose with her hands.
He was also forced into work outside until his skin blistered with sunburn and he became ill from dehydration, while his sister was made to jump on a cactus and walk barefoot on dirt roads.
The 12-year-old wanders up to doors in the neighbourhood wearing only socks, a shirt and shorts
Police pictures show how emaciated the boy had become (Picture: Washington County Attorney)
The new video reveals chilling details of the escape from Hildebrandt’s home which led to the pair’s downfall.
Investigators said the images capture the moments after the boy managed to break free from the torture cell.
He can be seen ringing the doorbell of a neighbour, then beginning to walk away before another local resident calls him back.
‘I was just wondering if you could do two favours,’ he says.
Ruby Franke wept in court as she admitted starving two of her children (Picture: Washington County Attorney)
The resident asks: ‘Well, what are they?’
‘Taking me to the nearest police station. Well, actually, just one’s fine,’ the boy replies.
When he’s asked for more details, the child heartbreakingly replies: ‘It’s just personal business.’
He is then handed water and a banana while they wait for the emergency services to arrive.
Medics had to remove duct tape and cling film from the boy’s arms and legs (Picture: Washington County Attorney)
He was covered in severely infected cuts that had been treated with home remedies (Picture: Washington County Attorney)
Ambulance crews treated his severely infected cuts and removed duct tape from his wrists and ankles.
The boy’s sister was later found crouched in a basement under Franke’s home, nervous and wary of speaking to police officers.
Franke and Hildebrandt were both sentenced to up to 30 years in prison after pleading guilty to aggravated child abuse last month.
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