A mother of seven adopted children who star in a YouTube channel called “The Fantastic Adventures” is accused of pepper spraying the kids to get them to perform for their YouTube show.
The channel, which has racked up more than 250 million views, stars a cast of seven children, adopted by Machelle Hackney, 48.
In the videos, the kids discuss silly topics and perform what’s described as low-fi visual effects and tricks. The children, who range in age from 6-15, seem adorable and charming while they entertain viewers, but behind the scenes, the kids have told a much scarier story of abuse and molestation at the hands of Hackney.
According to CNN, a welfare check last week found the family home was a den of abuse. The children claimed that their mother would withhold food and water for days at a time, pepper spray them and force them to take ice baths and lock them in a barren closet as punishment for various infractions.
CNN obtained a copy of a statement of probable cause, which stated that the children claimed they were disciplined if they could not recall their lines or didn’t want to participate in the videos as they were directed to.
The children told police that Hackney pulled them out of school so they could devote their time to filming their series.
The children reportedly haven’t attended school in years.
Police arrested Hackney on Friday for two counts of molestation of a child, seven counts of child abuse and five counts of child neglect and another five for unlawful imprisonment.
In the police report, Hackney claims she never used a closet for punishment and denied the accusations involving pepper spray and ice baths. She did admit that the only forms of punishment she used against the children were spankings and grounding them or making them stand in the corner.
Her two adult sons, Logan and Ryan Hackney were also arrested and charged with seven counts each of failing to report abuse of a minor.
The trio is currently being held without bond.
