A Connecticut jury on Wednesday sentenced radio host Alex Jones to pay nearly $1 billion in damages for saying the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre was a hoax.

After three days of deliberations, the jury decided to pay $965 million to the relatives of Sandy Hook’s eight victims and the FBI agent who filed a defamation lawsuit against Jones.

20 children and six teachers were killed in the attack on the school – Photo: Reproduction/WSVN/ND

Jones, founder of the InfoWars website and host of the popular radio show, was found guilty of several libel suits filed by parents of victims of a Newtown, Connecticut, shooting that killed 20 children and six teachers.

Jones, 48, claimed for years on her show that the school shooting was a “montage” by gun control proponents and that the victims’ parents were actors, but later admitted the case was “100% real.”

Last month, a Texas jury ordered Jones to pay almost $50 million to Neil Heslin and Scarlett Lewis, whose 6-year-old son was killed by the 20-year-old shooter responsible for the school shooting.

Bankruptcy

InfoWars filed for bankruptcy in April, as did another Jones company, Free Speech Systems, recently.

Jones appeared live on Infowars as the verdict was read in court and announced that he planned to appeal the decision. He asked his followers to visit the site and buy his products.

Chris Mattei, the families’ attorney, welcomed the jury’s decision. “We believe this is a historic event and we will carry out this verdict,” he said. “And if you’re listening to Alex Jones and thinking about giving him money, I want you to know that, according to today’s verdict, that’s not a good bet.”

“All Alex Jones does is take from you, exploit you, lie to you, feed your fears, anxieties and distrust. Well, today it ends thanks to the courage of these families,” the lawyer added.

A supporter of former President Donald Trump, Jones is also under investigation in connection with the January 6 Capitol attack. The former president made several appearances on Jones’ radio show during the 2016 election campaign, and the InfoWars founder was in Washington when Trump supporters stormed the US Congress.