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FOR years considered a haven of safety and natural beauty, Ecuador is now gripped by brutal cartel warfare – giving the country the grizzly honour of becoming Latin America’s m…
A BRITISH man has reportedly been burned to death by a wild mob after he was arrested in Ecuador.
The furious group lynched the man after storming the police station where he was being held, according to local media.
SuppliedThe Britis…
A DISGRACED therapist who was jailed alongside evil YouTube mom Ruby Franke “weaponized” child abuse and destroyed a client’s life, an alleged victim has claimed.
Jodi Hildebrandt allegedly tricked couples into setting sick traps for each other and paying millions of dollars to treat seemingly fabricated addictions as she waged war on sexual sin, according to her victims.
Jodi Hildebrandt, left, and Ruby Franke, right, were both sentenced to up to 30 years in state prison[/caption]
Adam Steed, 41, was responsible for bringing his abuser to justice back in 1997[/caption]
Adam aged 14 with some of his scout troop on a summer camp[/caption]
Hildebrandt is behind bars after she and Franke, a mom of six, each pleaded guilty to four counts of abusing Franke’s kids in December 2023.
The Mormon business partners were both sentenced to up to 30 years in prison.
They were caught after Franke’s youngest son escaped Hildebrandt’s house of horrors and begged a neighbor for help in August 2023 – exposing years of horrific child abuse.
While Franke and Hildebrandt worked together on their parenting and lifestyle YouTube channel called ConneXions Classrooms, Hildebrandt also offered counseling sessions.
Now, one of Hildebrandt’s clients, Adam Steed, has revealed his harrowing experience of attending her marriage counselling sessions.
He claimed it led to the breakdown of his relationship – and his life.
Hildebrandt said that Adam “was the most dangerous man she’s ever met in her lifetime,” he claims to The Sun.
Adam accused Hildebrandt of shaming him for being a victim of child sexual abuse and used it to turn his now ex-wife and community against him.
He was abused by a paedo Boy Scout leader at 14 years old – which he bravely spoke to The Sun about years later.
As part of the Mormon Church, Adam sought marriage counselling to help him and his ex-wife navigate the trauma from the abuse.
He was asked by his bishop to see a therapist who Adam believes to be “charismatic” and “very intelligent” – Hildebrandt.
Adam said he “confided” in her on everything he was struggling with and spoke about it at length.
But his life soon began to unravel in front of him.
Adam told The Sun: “Hildebrandt was operating her therapy group and I was sent to it. I’m a victim of sexual abuse – I [didn’t] want some triggering place with predators around me.
“I [wanted] marriage counseling to help us with some of the trauma from from abuse that I felt inside.
“Jodi Hildebrandt act[ed] like it was this fun talk show group where they laughed about ‘men are from Mars and women are from Venus’ kind of mentality.
“Just laughing… and making fun jokes with it. I didn’t realize at the time how prolifically wrong it was.
“The first thing that this therapist would do, and these other groups do, is to teach you that your own point of view is mentally ill, that you have distortion or illusions.
“But they made fun with it [and] won us over, not thinking it was dangerous.
“Then Jodi separates the men from the women, and then we’re at her mercy.”
Jodi Hildebrandt sits in court during her sentencing hearing in February 2024[/caption]
Ruby Franke was once best known for her popular YouTube channel[/caption]
Jodi Hildebrandt’s $5m house of horrors was where Franke’s children were tortured[/caption]
Adam claimed that as Hildebrandt drew couples in, she then would work “to destroy people through covert operations”.
He added: “Neither person, neither vulnerable person, understands until she destroys their marriage and has control.”
Another former client of Hildebrandt, Daniel Choate, supports Adam’s claims, revealing horror details in ID’s docuseries episode The Curious Case of Jodi Hildebrandt.
He said: “There wasn’t any aspect of the human condition that she couldn’t pathologize.”
Hildebrandt’s alleged aim of gaining control was achieved by empowering the women she was counselling – including Adam’s ex-wife – and then encouraging them to sever relations with their husbands, both Adam and Daniel claim.
Adam told The Sun: “Jodi was attracted to women that were younger, that were more attractive, that had positions of power and influence.
Jodi Hildebrandt act[ed] like it was this fun talk show
Adam Steed
“She would get these women to to do unimaginable things to other people, and that’s how she would get her power over them. And that’s just one dimension.”
Daniel reported the same as Steed of Hildebrandt allegedly empowering women to gain control of their husbands by making unreasonable demands over them.
He recalled his wife made a list of demands under the therapist’s instruction that banned him from sleeping in bed with her.
“If I didn’t abide by these rules, she let me know that she was going to take the kids and leave,” Daniel claimed.
Hildebrandt launched ConneXions in 2007, according to her LinkedIn.
In 2012, she was put on probation for 18 months after she was disciplined by Utah’s Division of Occupational and Professional Licensing, according to documents obtained by NBC News.
The therapist faced “unprofessional conduct” claims after she disclosed private information about a patient with Latter Day Saints church leaders and Brigham Young University officials.
The moment a Utah paramedic helped one of Franke’s children[/caption]
Neighbors called 911 after they saw the thin 12-year-old boy had horror wounds on his ankles, wrists, and back[/caption]
Adam revealed to NBC News that he was the former patient involved in the case.
He told The Sun that despite doing work with his dad to protect fellow victims of sexual abuse, “the next thing I know, it was all weaponized against me”.
Adam said he was told because of the work he had done “to help victims,” that became the reason why he was wrongfully depicted by Hildebrandt as being “unstable to be a father”.
He added: “Jodi Hildebrandt coached my ex-wife through this whole process in details of how to manipulate all the legal people to think it was a different story.”
Adam said her “methods” involved learning “everything” about the individuals to then grow “tons of power and control”.
He revealed that he still keeps in contact with Franke’s ex-husband, Kevin – who relayed just what Hildebrandt thinks of him.
Kevin allegedly told Adam that Hildebrandt “has been completely obsessed with you,” adding that Adam was a “family name… a regular name in my family”.
Jodi was attracted to women that were younger, that were more attractive, that had positions of power and influence
Adam Steed
The Sun has tried to approach Kevin’s attorney to confirm or clarify this statement.
Kevin has never been accused of any crimes or involvement in Hildebrandt’s actions.
When child abuse claims first emerged, Kevin told cops that he couldn’t explain what happened when Hildebrandt entered his family’s life, according to an interview released by prosecutors last year.
He said he was first convinced by Ruby and his friends to join ConneXions Classroom as a self-improvement program.
After joining the group, Kevin was shut out of his own home as Franke grew closer to Hildebrandt, he later told police.
Hildebrandt and Ruby Franke were each charged with six counts of felony aggravated child abuse and were sent to prison six months later for up to 30 years.
But Hildebrandt is challenging her conviction, arguing that she didn’t know her rights when she pleaded guilty to four counts of aggravated child abuse.
She has called her plea agreement “unlawful” and filed a petition for relief on her own behalf on March 24.
Hildebrandt and Ruby Franke are also being federally sued for their role in an alleged “racketeering scheme”.
The plaintiff, Michael Tilleman, says he is a victim of Hildebrandt’s ConneXions “fraudulent” business.
The lawsuit says that Hildebrandt would “prey on individuals in vulnerable positions who were seeking legitimate mental health services”.
She would also allegedly indoctrinate the victims into sustain abuse in their households, according to the suit.
The defendants have not yet filed a response to the suit.
The Sun has approached The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints for comment, as well as The Boy Scouts of America and Jodi Hildebrandt’s rep.
Starting in May 2023, disgraced YouTuber Ruby Franke journaled about the punishments she imposed on her children.
She appeared to justify the abuse by referring to “Satanic choices” and “the devil’s” influences on her kids’ actions.
Some of the horrific punishments detailed in the journal include:
A PRESCHOOL teacher is standing trial in South Africa for the rape and murder of her boyfriend’s four-year-old daughter.
Amber Lee Hughes, 25, allegedly raped and murdered Nada-Jane Challita on January 23, 2023.
NewsflashAmber Hug…
A CHINESE Triad crimelord and his wife have been shot dead in a mafia-style execution in Rome.
Zhang Dayong, 53, also known as “Asheng,” was found dead alongside his partner Gong Xiaoqing, 38, outside their home in the eastern …
A WOMAN who claims she was raped by the Madeleine McCann suspect is suing Portuguese cops for failing to investigate her case properly.
Holiday rep Hazel Behan immediately reported her brutal 2004 torture at the hands of a masked sicko in the Algarve to cops.
Madeleine McCann suspect Christian Beurckner pictured in Germany in April 2024[/caption]
Brueckner pictured arriving to court last year[/caption]
Hazel Behan speaking bravely on The Late Late Show in 2015[/caption]
She is now taking Portuguese detectives to court claiming they failed to take steps to identify her attacker who she believes was Christian B – prime suspect over the disappearance of Maddie in May 2007.
Hazel claims bungling cops failed to seize the blood-stained bed sheets and broken false nails from the struggle which could have contained her attacker’s DNA.
Her application claims the same force failed to provide Hazel with a translator so she could understand the process and make a more detailed witness statement.
The community worker’s claim even claims the cops put her under surveillance and asked her to return to Ireland because her attack was “damaging” the tourism industry.
Hazel said: “Lodging my case with the European Court of Human Rights is not just about seeking justice for myself—it’s about standing up after being silenced and ignored for far too long.
“I carry the pain of how I was treated every single day, but I hope the Court will ensure that my human rights are protected in line with the very standards that is expected right across Europe.
“And that maybe, through this, Portugal, and other countries, will treat victims of rape, both domestic and foreign, with the decency and respect we deserve.”
Hazel went to cops claiming Christian B was the man who attacked her after seeing pictures of him when he was revealed as the prime Maddie suspect, in 2020.
She says Portuguese cops simply closed the case without asking her.
And she alleges their “systematic failings” undermined her rape trial last year, which saw Christian B cleared and sensationally put on the path to freedom.
Prolific burglar and convicted child abuser Christian B raped an American pensioner just a year after Hazel’s ordeal – in the village Madeleine was snatched from, Praia da Luz.
Hazel’s lawyer, Darragh Mackin, said: “The European Court of Human Rights exists for a reason.
“It exists to ensure victims like Hazel Behan are guaranteed a minimum level of protections across the various member states.
“Through this action, Hazel has highlighted the systematic and inexcusable failings by the Portuguese authorities has denied her and many other victims, justice for nearly two decades.
“These failings have ultimately contributed to the acquittal of one of the most high profile perpetrators in modern history.
“This case is about ensuring that victims of sexual violence are not ignored, dismissed, or silenced by the very systems that are meant to protect them.”
German investigators are currently in a race against time to stop Christian B being released from prison – potentially in a matter of weeks.
They have appealed for a retrial of the sex offences he was cleared of last year – including Hazel’s rape case.
A conviction would allow them to keep him behind bars indefinitely and buy them crucial time to continue investigating the Maddie case.
Maddie pictured in Portugal before she disappeared[/caption]
MADELEINE McCann vanished on May 3, 2007 – and cops believe Brueckner could have been behind her disappearance.
Almost 17 years on, no one has been charged in connection. These are the key dates
May 3, 2007 – Kate McCann finds Madeleine missing at 10pm
May 14, 2007 – Property developer Robert Murat is named an “arguido” or formal suspect
August 31, 2007 – The McCanns launch libel action against Tal e Qual – a newspaper that claimed the couple killed Madeleine
September 7, 2007 – Kate and Gerry McCann are made “arguidos”
September 9, 2007– Madeleine’s parents return to England with their two-year-old twins
October 2, 2007– Lead detective Goncalo Amaral is taken off the case after criticising British police in a newspaper interview
July 21, 2009 – Portuguese police lift the “arguido” status of both Robert Murat and the McCanns
May 12, 2011 – On Madeleine’s eighth birthday, Scotland Yard launches a review into the case
April 25, 2012 – Scotland Yard officers say they believe Madeleine McCann is still alive
July 4, 2013 – Two years into a review of the case, Scotland Yard launched its own investigation into Madeleine’s disappearance
October 24, 2013– Portuguese police reopen their case after new lines of inquiry are found
November 27, 2013 – Met Police Commissioner Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe called for British and Portuguese police to work together
October 28, 2015 – Scotland Yard reduces the number of officers working on Madeleine’s disappearance
March 11, 2017 – The Home Office grants Operation Grange an extra £85,000 to continue from April until September
September 28, 2017 – British police are granted £154,000 to keep the probe going until March 2018
November 2017 – Cops moved the search to Bulgaria
May 2018 – Another round of funding, thought to be in the region of £150,000 is granted
September 2018 – An extra six months of funding is requested from the Home Office
November 2018 – More funding, thought to be in the region of £150,000 is granted
November 2018 – UK police re-examine a theory Madeleine left the apartment to look for her parents
June 2019 – Another round of funding, believed to be £300,000 of government cash is granted
June 2019 – Portuguese police are probing a “new clue and suspect” after talks with British officers
June 2020 – New prime suspect revealed as a German paedo Christian Brueckner
April 2022 – Brueckner formally made an “arguido”
May 2023 – Police search remote Algarve reservoir Brueckner called his “little paradise”
A DOCTOR with a “lust for murder” has been charged with killing 15 patients in his care, with prosecutors fearing he may have murdered more.
The 40-year-old physician in Berlin, named only as Johannes M. in German media, was in…
GIGGLING as she tosses back her long blonde ponytail, the petite French teenager is a far cry from a stereotypical drug dealer.
But this slender young girl, nicknamed Ghost, is fi…
MANSLAUGHTER charges could be brought over the Bayesian superyacht horror that left four Brits dead – with the wreck to be raised in days.
Suffolk Coroner’s Court was told today how separate criminal investigations are being conducted in the UK by the Maritime Coastguard Agency and by prosecutors in Sicily.
The inquest is being conducted into the deaths of the four British victims Dr Mike Lynch, 59, his daughter Hannah, 18, and his friends, Morgan Stanley International bank chairman Jonathan Bloomer, 70, and his wife Judy Bloomer, 71.
The families of three of the victims are said to have “concerns” about safety issues with the 184ft yacht, which sank in a storm while at anchor off the coast of Porticello in the early hours of August 19.
A pre-inquest review hearing was also told an interim report by the UK’s Marine Accident Investigation Branch is expected to be published in four to six weeks time.
Operations to salvage the Bayesian from its position on the 160ft deep seabed are due to start on Sunday and are expected to take several weeks.
Mark Cam, an inspector for the Maritime Coastguard Agency, said that MCA investigators hoped to examine the Bayesian when it was back on shore as it is a “primary” source of evidence.
He added that the MCA had already commissioned a report from the Meteorological Office into the weather at the time of the sinking.
Billionaire Dr Lynch was celebrating being cleared of a massive fraud over the sale of Autonomy to computer giant Hewlett-Packard in 2011 when the Bayesian went down.
The other victims were US lawyer Chris Morvillo and his wife Neda Morvillo, and Canadian-Antiguan chef Recaldo Thomas. A further 15 people were rescued.
Lawyer James Healy-Pratt, representing the families of Mr Thomas and the Bloomers, said their loved ones had “concerns there may be issues with safety”.
He added: “The owner of the Bayesian had legal obligations including the seaworthiness of the vessel and due diligence”.
Jonathan and Judy Bloomer who also tragically died[/caption]
Recaldo Thomas, a Canadian-Antiguan chef working on board died[/caption]
CCTV cameras caught the boat moments before it sank[/caption]
The Bayesian superyacht sank off the coast of Sicily last month killing seven[/caption]
He requested the owners and managers of the boat be made “interested persons” during the proceedings.
Mr Healy-Pratt also called for the Australian insurers of the yacht QBE, trading as British Marine, to be given the same status, saying: “I would expect cover of £100 million to £200 million by way of marine insurance.”
Maritime Coastguard Agency Mr Cam told the hearing that the MCA was conducting an investigation into the tragedy in parallel to the Italian authorities.
He said: “We are looking at whether there has been culpability in breaches of maritime legislation.
“The Italians are conducting a criminal investigation which incorporates the equivalent of manslaughter.”
Describing the investigation as “very much ongoing”, he said: “We have taken a number of witness statements and will be looking to take witness statements from the remaining crew members.
“Virtually all the crew members do not live in the UK. When we take evidence from a foreign jurisdiction. We are reliant on the foreign jurisdiction allowing us to take evidence.”
Suffolk Coroner Nigel Parsley adjourned the hearing for a date for another pre-hearing on a date to be fixed in September or October.
The full inquest is expected it last five to ten days.
Initial investigations revealed that four victims survived the sinking off Sicily but died in an air pocket.
Of the 22 onboard, 15 survived with 11, including Mike Lynch’s wife, rescued on an inflatable life raft.
Lynch’s 18-year-old daughter Hannah was the last passenger to be discovered in the third cabin.
The 184 ft Bayesian was carrying 22 people when it sank within minutes of being hit by a downburst – a strong, localised wind – while anchored in Porticello near Palermo.
The luxury vessel was caught up in a tornado which caused it to sink in the early hours of the morning.
Fifteen of those on board were rescued on a life raft, while the yacht’s cook Recaldo Thomas was discovered dead in the water shortly afterwards.
Specialist divers recovered the bodies of billionaire Lynch, 59, and four of his guests, from the first cabin on the left.
Officials said the victims had scrambled to reach air pockets in the yacht, which sank 164ft stern-first before rolling onto its right side on the seabed.
Chief Prosecutor Ambrogio Cartosio said the victims would have been asleep when a tornado-like waterspout struck the boat, leaving them unable to escape.
Lynch had just won a court case over the sale of Autonomy to tech giant HP after being accused of fraudulently raising the price.
The 59-year-old had been living under house arrest in San Francisco, US, with just his beloved dog Faucet for company, for well over a year.
He was finally acquitted just months ago and spoke about longing to spend time with his wife, Angela Bacares and their two daughters.
In 1996, he started software company Autonomy, which would be used to analyse huge swathes of data from unstructured sources like phone calls, emails and videos.
Describing his small team he said: “Eccentric people working really hard on a project. No bureaucracy. No admin. Lots of late nights, lots of eating cold pizza”.
By Ellie Doughty, Foreign News Reporter
Data recovered from the Bayesian’s Automatic Identification System (AIS) breaks down exactly how it sank in a painful minute-by-minute timeline.
At 3.50am on Monday August 19 the Bayesian began to shake “dangerously” during a fierce storm, Italian outlet Corriere revealed.
Just minutes later at 3.59am the boat’s anchor gave way, with a source saying the data showed there was “no anchor left to hold”.
After the ferocious weather ripped away the boat’s mooring it was dragged some 358 metres through the water.
By 4am it had began to take on water and was plunged into a blackout, indicating that the waves had reached its generator or even engine room.
At 4.05am the Bayesian fully disappeared underneath the waves.
An emergency GPS signal was finally emitted at 4.06am to the coastguard station in Bari, a city nearby, alerting them that the vessel had sunk.
Early reports suggested the disaster struck around 5am local time off the coast of Porticello Harbour in Palermo, Sicily.
The new data pulled from the boat’s AIS appears to suggest it happened an hour earlier at around 4am.
Some 15 of the 22 onboard were rescued, 11 of them scrambling onto an inflatable life raft that sprung up on the deck.
A smaller nearby boat – named Sir Robert Baden Powell – then helped take those people to shore.
VIRGINIA Giuffre has broken her silence with a cryptic social media post after what she described as a near-death horror bus crash in Australia.
The Prince Andrew accuser sparked …