Three companies owned by far-right conspirator and multimillionaire Alex Jones have filed for bankruptcy as Jones seeks to duck damages for his Sandy Hook lies.
The Chapter 11 filing on Sunday, which lists up to $10 million in liabilities, would allow Jones to continue operating his businesses and would snarl legal judgments against him. Bloomberg earlier reported on Jones’ bankruptcy plans, citing a source with knowledge of the plot.
A court filing earlier this month by parents suing Jones for defamation also claimed that he has diverted millions of dollars to an “alphabet soup” of shell companies to dodge damages by squirreling away his assets. The suit claims that he drew $18 million from his companies after the first suit was filed in 2018.
After 26 people — including 20 first-graders — were killed in the horrific mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newton, Connecticut, in 2012, Jones insisted that the bloodbath was a “hoax” staged by “crisis actors” and that no one was actually killed. He now admits it did happen.
Jones and his companies were found liable last year in a defamation lawsuit in the state over his “heartless and vile lies” brought by families of dead children. Not only did Jones profit from his outrageous tales, but the families were also subjected to death threats and hate mail and phone calls by his supporters after Jones attacked them on his radio program.
An upcoming trial will determine the amount of damages Jones will have to pay. He was also found liable in three similar lawsuits in Texas, where he lives.
Jones could not be reached for comment Sunday.
Jones refused to turn over documents — including financial information — ordered by courts in both states.
He also blew off a court-ordered deposition last month to determine damages, claiming to be ill. When his lawyers informed the judge of his excuse, he was in the middle of a four-hour radio broadcast, The Washington Post reported.
Jones later turned up when attorneys for the families sought an arrest warrant for him, and the judge imposed a $25,000 daily fine against him for each day he missed. The judge agreed to refund his $75,000 once he complied.
Jones reportedly helped fund and was on the scene for the rally in Washington, D.C., that preceded the storming of the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. He told his InfoWars listeners in January that he invoked his Fifth Amendment protection against self-incrimination nearly 100 times when he was questioned by the House select committee investigating the insurrection.