The 8 Passengers vlogger, known for sharing her family life online, stood before Judge John J. Walton, offering no plea for leniency but thanking those who intervened to save her kids from her tyrannical rule, influenced, she claims, by her sinister business partner, Jodi Hildebrandt.
Hildebrandt, a mental health counsellor turned child abuser, joins Franke in receiving the same harsh sentence, marking a dark end to their twisted collaboration. The duo’s heinous acts came to light after Franke’s 12-year-old son staged a daring escape, leading to their arrest in a scene straight out of a horror movie, complete with wounds, duct tape bindings, and a plea for help that shocked the community.
In court, Franke wept, lamenting the pain she inflicted on her “tender souls,” while Hildebrandt, showing a flicker of remorse, claimed a twisted love for the children she helped torture. Their cruel methods, likened to “concentration camp” tactics by the prosecution, included forcing children to endure physical labour in blistering heat, dunking a child’s head under water, and even coercing a young girl to jump into a cactus.
The saga of abuse has ended the 8 Passengers channel and shattered the Franke family, with Kevin Franke filing for divorce and the community reeling from the revelations.
With a 30-day window to appeal their sentences, the final chapter in this grim tale is yet to be written.
