WASHINGTON, D. C. – JUNE 21: Wandrea ArShaye “Shaye” Moss, a former Georgia election staffer, gets emotional as she testifies as her mother Ruthrough Freeman watches the fourth hearing held by the special committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the U. S. Capitol on June 21, 2022, at the construction of the Cannon House workplace in Washington, D. C. , DC. The bipartisan committee, which has been collecting evidence similar to the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U. S. Capitol for about a year, is presenting its findings in a series of televised hearings. On January 6, 2021, supporters of President Donald Trump attacked the U. S. Capitol in an attempt to disrupt a congressional vote to verify Joe Biden’s victory in the Electoral College. (Photo by Michael Reynolds-Pool/Getty Images)
Far-right news site The Gateway Pundit responded to allegations of “bankruptcy abuse” at a hearing on Thursday, more than a week after admitting that the company’s finances went toward non-public spending.
In April, Jim Hoft, founder of the media site, announced that his company had filed for bankruptcy after facing lawsuits over false statements related to the 2020 presidential election.
The Gateway Pundit has faced litigation from election staff and others who have been harassed after the site made false claims that the 2020 election was stolen.
In connection with a bankruptcy filing, the company reported having liabilities between $100,000 and $500,000.
He said he had assets between $500,000 and $1 million, which was later revised to $2. 3 million.
A Florida bankruptcy ruled on a petition by creditors (three other people who sued the site for defamation), the mother and daughter of Georgia election staff Ruby Freeman and Wandrea “Shaye” Moss, and former Dominion Voting Systems worker Eric Coomer.
At a June 18 bankruptcy hearing, Hoft outlined his finances and revealed that he used his business to obtain an $800,000 loan to purchase a condo in Jensen Beach, Florida, in 2021.
According to a filing, so far none of the loans have been repaid. It is recorded that the condominium is the headquarters of the company.
According to another filing, The Gateway Pundit also owns a 2021 Porsche Cayenne valued at roughly $54,000. Hoft said he used it as a “company car” whenever he was in St. Louis. John’s. Louis, Missouri, where he’s from and where he still spends the year’s high. His monthly salary is $17,000.
Hoft to see the difference between his finances and TGP Communications, the now-bankrupt company that owns The Gateway Pundit, as nothing more than a formality.
He and his brother, Joe Hoft, co-founder of Gateway Pundit, had taken out loans from the company.
When asked if the loans had been recorded in writing, what interest rates were applied, and the maturity dates of the loans, the founder did not give any concrete answers.
“We have never been profitable,” the founder told the court.
Hoft said the company’s litigation insurance policy would cover all expenses similar to defamation cases.
One of the attorneys who spoke at the hearing said there was $1. 2 million to $1. 3 million left over from the original $2 million.
“Insurance policies, as you know, are going down, and that’s a serious explanation for why I looked at the scenario I was in and that bankruptcy would be a smart choice,” Hoft said at the hearing.
Some creditors who sued The Gateway Pundit have argued that bankruptcy is a legal maneuver to evade liability in other courts.
“This case is a natural controversial tactic,” lawyers for Georgia election officials wrote in a filing.
At the end of the hearing, a lawyer for the U. S. receiver’s office warned that his office could try to get the bankruptcy ignored, exposing The Gateway Pundit to the defamation lawsuits it attempted, or hand over control of the company to someone. other.
“Don’t be if the U. S. trustee files a motion to convert, revoke, or appoint a Chapter 11 trustee in this case,” the attorney said.
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