Conspiracy theorist Alex Jones has filed for bankruptcy.
Jones, the founder of the far-right conspiracy website InfoWars, owes nearly $1.5 billion in restitution to the families of the victims of the Sandy Hook school shooting.
He was indicted after accusing relatives of dead children and teachers of being actors who faked the massacre.
Jones, 48, described the shooting as “a counterfeit three-dollar bill” and claimed the entire event was staged to curb gun rights.
He was ordered to pay $1.4 billion in a Connecticut case and $45 million in a Texas case for damages caused by his lies.
He and his lawyer said he will appeal the ruling.
In December 2012, a shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut killed 20 students aged six and seven and six staff members.
Jones filed for Chapter 11 protection from creditors in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Houston, Texas, according to a court filing.
In the filing, he said he had assets of $1 million to $10 million and liabilities of $1 billion to $10 billion.
Chapter 11 bankruptcy law allows companies or individuals to file a restructuring plan that will allow them to pay off their debts while continuing to operate.
Notorious US conspiracy theorist Alex Jones ordered to pay $965 million to families of Sandy Hook school massacre
The controversial host has been banned from nearly all major social media due to his conspiracy theories.
He still streams content on his platform to a loyal online following.
Jones made headlines around the world Thursday after he joined Kanye West In an interview, the rapper praised Hitler.
Despite Jones’ exile on social media, clips of his conversations with the rapper have gone viral, and West’s views on the Nazis have sparked widespread outrage.
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Who is Alex Jones?
“You’re not Hitler, you’re not a Nazi, so you shouldn’t be called and demonized like that,” he told the rapper.
West, whose face was covered by a black mask throughout the interview, replied: “Well, I see the good in Hitler too.
“I love everyone, and the Jews don’t tell me, ‘You can love, you know, us’…Everyone has something of value that they bring to the table, especially Hitler.”
Jones, who was born in Dallas, Texas, started working in cable television in the 1990s, where he developed a cult following thanks to his conspiracy theories.
In 1999, he co-founded InfoWars, a site that has become popular in online conspiracy circles and reportedly had more than 10 million monthly visits in 2017.
The site’s parent company, Free Speech Systems LLC, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy earlier this year after numerous controversies and lawsuits.
In addition to the Sandy Hook conspiracy theory, he infamously spread the “Pizzagate” fake story, claiming that a pizzeria in Washington, D.C., was the center of an international pedophile abuse ring run by a prominent Democrat.