Infowars founder Alex Jones on Sunday filed for voluntary Chapter 11 after losing lawsuits filed by parents of children killed in the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting, according to reports.
The conspiracy website filed for bankruptcy in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas, according to Reuters. If the request is approved, the website can continue to operate while it sets up a plan to reorganize. The move would also suspend further civil litigation.
On his radio show, as well as Infowars.com, Jones claimed the December 14, 2012, shooting at the elementary school in Newtown, Connecticut — which killed 20 first graders and six educators — was a “hoax” staged by “crisis actors.” He said their intent was to spur more opposition to the Second Amendment.
Over the last year, the far-right host was found liable for damages in at least three defamation cases brought by families of the victims, and several other suits are pending.
Jones offered to settle the lawsuits by paying $120,000 to each plaintiff, but the families rejected the proposal, The Hill reported. No damages have yet been assessed, but a trial to set them is scheduled to begin in August.
Last month, Jones was fined $75,000 when he did not appear for a deposition in a defamation case, but a judge refunded the money when Jones appeared.
“Alex Jones is just delaying the inevitable: a public trial in which he will be held accountable for his profit-driven campaign of lies against the Sandy Hook families who have brought this lawsuit,” Christopher Mattei, who represents the families in a Connecticut lawsuit against Jones, said at the time, according to the Associated Press.
“Another newly filed lawsuit accuses Jones of hiding millions of dollars in assets, but an attorney for Jones has called that allegation ‘ridiculous.'” the AP reported.
That lawsuit claims Jones is hiding money and that he drew $18 million from Infowars over the last three years.
“After Alex Jones was sued for claiming the massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary was a hoax, the infamous conspiracy theorist conspired to divert his assets to shell companies owned by insiders like his parents, his children, and himself,” says the lawsuit, which was filed in Austin, Texas, by more families of the Sandy Hook victims.
“According to the lawsuit, Jones is accused of drawing about $18 million from his Infowars company over three years, starting in 2018 when the defamation lawsuits were filed. Jones is also accused of claiming a ‘dubious’ $54 million debt around that time to another company, which the lawsuit alleges is indirectly or directly owned by Jones.”
The wire service cited Norm Pattis, an attorney for Jones, who said no one is hiding assets. “The suggestion is ridiculous. We look forward to litigating these issues,” Pattis said.
Joseph Curl has covered politics for 35 years, including 12 years as White House correspondent, and ran the Drudge Report from 2010 to 2015. Send tips to [email protected] and follow him on Twitter @josephcurl.