CNN
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A Texas bankruptcy judge has approved the liquidation of conspiracy theorist Alex Jones’ personal assets, setting the stage for him to repay the families of victims of the Sandy Hook shooting.
Last week, Jones agreed to convert his bankruptcy to a Chapter 7 liquidation proceeding. Judge Christopher Lopez agreed to the change on Friday.
Jones’ decision to file for bankruptcy came after he agreed to demands from the families of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting victims, who claim he owes the victims’ families more than $1 billion for lying about the 2012 school shooting.
The judge said an interim receiver would be appointed to manage Jones’ estate, as is standard in such cases. Jones’ lawyer, Vicki Driver, told the court that $2.8 million in proceeds from the sale of Jones’ ranch could be paid to the receiver.
The shocking ruling clears the way for Jones to relinquish Infowars, the influential conspiracy empire he founded in the late 1990s and used the media company for years to poison public opinion with lies and conspiracy theories, making millions of dollars and lining his own pockets in the process.
Judge Lopez is scheduled to consider on Friday whether to liquidate Jones’ company, Free Speech Systems, the parent company of Infowars, to pay judgments to the families of those killed in the Sandy Hook shooter.
Jones has opposed the dissolution of Infowars, and recently blasted the site on his show about its possible imminent closure and urged viewers to support it by buying his products.
Repeating rhetoric he has used to rally support, Jones said Friday that the notorious media assets will likely disappear as part of the ongoing bankruptcy proceedings.
“Maybe Infowars is about to end,” Jones told reporters on Friday, shortly before entering bankruptcy court in Houston, but added that “this is just the beginning of my fight against tyranny.”
Regardless of whether a judge ultimately liquidates Infowars, the proceeds from the sale of the company would only cover a fraction of the money owed to the families of the Sandy Hook victims. Still, the families, who have yet to receive the roughly $1.5 billion judgment they won, are calling for Infowars to be liquidated, along with Infowars’ parent company, Free Speech Systems.
The family members argued to the court that there was “no prospect” that Jones’ company would be able to develop a proper restructuring plan under Chapter 11 bankruptcy and continue operating through the restructuring.
While the trustee could choose to sell the entire company to a potential buyer, lawyers representing Sandy Hook families expect Jones’ Infowars empire will be sold piecemeal, with the proceeds going to their clients, making it unlikely, but not impossible, that Infowars would be able to continue operating in liquidation.
The closure of Infowars could move quickly, with a court-appointed receiver tasked with securing assets and selling Jones’ media empire, which includes websites, studio space and broadcasting facilities.
The judge’s ruling on Friday won’t stop Jones from spreading conspiracy theories and lies online — X CEO Elon Musk reinstated Jones’ social media accounts in December 2023 after he was banned from the platform for five years — and Jones will be able to make any number of far-right media appearances to share his outlandish views.
But the families of the Sandy Hook Elementary School victims want Jones’ social media accounts seized, arguing that they’re a key part of the Infowars business, helping Jones promote his own brand. And Jones may not be welcome at some venues: He was listed as a guest for the Milwaukee leg of Tucker Carlson’s Live tour but was recently removed from the lineup without explanation.
Since founding Infowars in the late 1990s, Jones has promoted several conspiracy theories, including that the 2012 Newtown, Connecticut, school shooting was a government-staged “false flag” operation and that the families of the 20 children killed were “actors.” Jones makes money from these theories by peddling expensive nutritional supplements to his audience.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
