Influencer Mom Ruby Franke's Child Abuse Charges 'Shocked' Neighbor — But She 'Saw Some Weird Things' (Exclusive)

Although there were some “minor red flags” over the past year that led neighbors and some family members to grow concerned about Ruby Franke, a neighbor says the family vlogger's arrest on child abuse charges took their affluent, tight-knit neighborhood by surprise.

In an exclusive interview, a neighbor who has lived near the Frankes for about five years tells PEOPLE the influencer mom’s arrest “was definitely shocking,” although some families in the neighborhood had seen troubling signs over the past year.

“I think we saw some weird things,” the neighbor, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, says. “But I don't think anybody thought that these kids were being physically abused to that degree.”

Franke gained more than two million followers on her YouTube channel “8Passengers,” which documented the Mormon family's life alongside husband Kevin Franke and their six kids. But in recent years, the family’s social media followers began to raise concerns about Franke’s parenting to the point she deleted the page.

Subsequently, Franke went on to start a parenting advice podcast called “Connexions” with Jodi Hildebrandt, who was also arrested in Ivins, Utah, last week and charged with multiple counts of aggravated child abuse, the same charges Franke faces.

Police alleged in a statement that one of Franke’s children escaped Hildebrandt’s house and ran to a neighbor, asking for food and water. Authorities say officers then found another young child who also appeared “malnourished” inside Hildebrandt’s home.

Franke’s neighbor says one of the biggest red flags over the last year was that the family’s two youngest children went from being ever-present in the neighborhood to suddenly absent from public view.

“She really started isolating her kids,” the neighbor says.

“We saw their presence in the neighborhood almost daily, and then we just quit seeing the youngest two around,” the neighbor says. ‘That was a big change. For most of us, it didn't point to criminal behavior. It was just curious. Like, what happened there?”

Although that “raised a big question mark” for neighbors, their biggest concern was that the Franke’s two teenage girls appeared to be left home alone for weeks on end, the neighbor claims. “It's like she went down to southern Utah [to Hildebrandt’s house] with the two youngest and then left the teenage girls home alone up here in Springville, which is about four or five hours away,” the neighbor alleges. “It's odd.”

Franke always seemed “friendly and engaging” prior to this past year, the neighbor says.

“She wasn't off-putting, we didn't hear her screaming at her kids – there wasn't anything like that,” the neighbor says.

The Frankes renovated their backyard after they moved in and put in a sand volleyball court, a hot tub, and an outdoor pizza oven for the family. Ruby and Kevin were even teaching their children how to beekeep, the neighbor says.

“They really set that house up with their kids in mind and spent a lot of money doing it,” the neighbor says. “That's what was so baffling as this then evolved.”

The neighbor says their community is an affluent one that’s “filled with doctors, executives, very successful families” and experiences very little crime, making Franke’s arrest last week a dramatic event.

Every family stood out on their lawns watching the scene unfold, the neighbor says, recalling “at least a dozen” police cars arrived on scene and officers “in tactical gear” were wielding assault weapons. 

“We were concerned that we might see kids coming out in body bags,” the neighbor says, adding that at one point police broke down the door and found nobody home. “We knew it was serious.”

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The neighbor says the news about Franke’s alleged abuse was “heartbreaking” for other families in the community. Some had contacted child protection services in recent months to check in on the family’s teenage girls who appeared abandoned at home, the neighbor says.

In recent days, Franke’s sisters and her oldest daughter Shari all spoke out in support of her arrest, saying her young children are now safe.

“It's heartbreaking because these are sweet, engaging, innocent kids and good kids,” the neighbor says. “These were not derelicts that were out vandalizing the neighborhood. These were sweet, engaging kids.”

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.