HOUSTON – The trustee in conspiracy theorist Alex Jones’ bankruptcy case is accusing the Infowars host of trying to shield millions of dollars in assets from creditors, including families of victims of the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting.
U.S. bankruptcy trustee Christopher Murray filed three lawsuits in federal bankruptcy court in Texas on Friday alleging Jones fraudulently transferred around $5 million in cash, cars and property to family members.
What they’re saying:
Murray called the moves “textbook fraudulent transfers” from Jones to his wife and father.
The other side:
Jones then expressed frustration at Murray for naming his father in the recent lawsuit, claiming David Jones is seriously ill.
The lawsuits accuse Jones of transferring $1.5 million in cash to his wife over a premarital agreement that Murray says was never ratified.
Court documents also claim Jones sold part of a Texas ranch to his father for $10 and then back-dated papers to make it appear like it happened years prior to make it safe from collection.
Sandy Hook settlement
Alex Jones declared bankruptcy and was forced to liquidate his assets after he was ordered to pay $1.4 billion to the families of victims in the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in Newtown, Connecticut.
A judge found Jones liable for defamation and emotional distress. All proceeds from the liquidation would go to Jones’ creditors, which include the Sandy Hook families.
Sale of Infowars and Free Speech Systems
After the Sandy Hook judgment, Jones’ companies, Infowars and Free Speech Systems filed for bankruptcy and were ordered to be auctioned off.
The live auction was held for the intellectual properties owned by Free Speech Systems Media Holdings, which includes Infowars, its production rights, archives and social media accounts.
Proceeds of the auction were supposed to go towards paying the families.
Jones claimed The Onion colluded with some of the families and a court-appointed trustee overseeing the liquidation process.
First United American Companies offered $3.5 million, while The Onion offered $1.75 million in cash. The humor sites’ bid also included a pledge to Sandy Hook families to forgo some or all of the auction proceeds due to them to give other creditors a total of $100,000 more than they would receive under other bids.
Jones alleges the bid violated the rules of the auction and says Murray canceled an expected round of live bidding.
Lopez cited problems — but no wrongdoing — with the auction process. He said he did not think that those involved in the auction acted in bad faith and that everyone “put their best foot forward and tried to play within the rules.”
