Controversial radio show host Alex Jones is being forced to officially pull the plug on his long-running Infowars channel for good.
The Hill reports that the trustee in charge of Jones’ bankruptcy proceedings, Christopher Murray, stated he would be moving to shut down Infowars. He also is planning to liquidate Jones’ business assets. This is to repay the families of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting victims.
Alex Jones used his Infowars platform to make false claims about the 2012 Newtown, Conn. shooting. The horrific event resulted in the deaths of 20 first graders and six educators. He also often referred to the shooting as a “hoax” and the victims as “crisis actors.”
Jones’s claims resulted in excessive harassment of the victims’ families. After years of enduring the abuse of Jones and his listeners, the families sued the radio show host. They won a $1.5 billion judgment. The court’s decision resulted in Jones filing for bankruptcy.
Murray further stated that in an “emergency” motion, he is going to “conduct an orderly wind-down” of the Infowars platform and will sell its assets.
Murray’s announcement also comes just weeks after a federal judge in Texas ruled to liquidate Alex Jones’ personal assets However, the judge did not determine the fate of Infowars when their ruling was announced.
Infowars was founded in March 1999 and is known for regularly publishing conspiracy theories. Last month, Jones broke down in tears as he claimed to be “targeted for abuse” with the pending shutdown of his media brand. “The art was taken off the walls, employees took their stuff home, there were tears,” Jones said. He further claimed that his tears were real and not a “publicity stunt.”
Families of Sandy Hook Victims Also Want to Take Down Alex Jones’ Social Media Accounts
Along with plans to seize all of Alex Jones’ personal assets and Infowars’ assets, the families of the Sandy Hook Victims stated they wanted to seize his social media accounts as well.
Earlier this month, The Hill reported that the families had moved to take over Jones’s social accounts. The families argued that the accounts should also be included in the liquidation. This would prevent Jones from using them to create future businesses.
The families further claimed Alex Jones’s X account is “no different” than a customer list of any other liquidating business. The account currently has 2.3 million followers.
Court records reveal that Jones has less than $12 million in assets. He is expected to carry a large legal debt even after Infowars and his other assets are sold.
During the 2022 trial, Alex Jones admitted that it was irresponsible of him to accuse the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting of being a hoax. He also said that he believed the shooting was “100% real” after meeting the victims’ parents. Jones had been the only person to testify in his defense.