Sorrento’s Wolfgang Halbig still insists Sandy Hook was faked

 

By Katie Sartoris ksartoris@dailycommercial.com SORRENTO – Wolfgang Halbig says he’s been attacked, harassed, his reputation destroyed – all for asking questions.

But they aren’t just any questions. Halbig has, with the help of InfoWars founder Alex Jones, broadcast conspiracy theories about the 2012 massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut.

Halbig, a Sorrento resident, is named in defamation lawsuits against Jones filed by family members of the shooting victims. The suits say Jones and his associates have been spreading baseless claims about the Sandy Hook massacre that left 20 children and six educators dead.

In a deposition released last week, Jones said Halbig sent him thousands of emails over the years, providing him much of the information that helped propel the notion that Sandy Hook never happened, that it was a hoax cooked up by the government in its effort to take away Americans’ guns.

InfoWars is a is a far-right conspiracy theory website and broadcasts The Alex Jones Show. Halbig even appeared on Jones’ show a few times. In his deposition, Jones said he relied on Halbig’s research because he seemed credible – Halbig worked for the Lake County School District as a risk manager and has a background in law enforcement.

In that same deposition, Jones said he believes that the mass shooting at Sandy Hook did happen.
But Halbig, 72, is pressing on despite his family’s objections. He said his quest for the real story behind Sandy Hook has become personal.

“I don’t want to be doing this. I’m too old,” Halbig said in an interview. “I want to play with my grandkids.”

His quest started when he was asked to speak at a 2013 Florida School Boards Association about how to prevent a tragedy like the Sandy Hook shooting in the future. He started looking into the details surrounding the event and thought things just didn’t add up.

So he started requesting public records. Among them: Halbig asked who cleaned up the blood from the shooting and for the photos of children’s bodies.

“For six years, my public records requests in Connecticut, they’ve been refusing to answer me,” Halbig said.

Since his theories began receiving public attention, Halbig said he’s been “attacked and brutalized.”
“I saw an Alex Jones story that said ‘The Sandy Hook School shooting has more holes in it than Swiss cheese,’” Halbig said. “I wanted to fill in those holes – that’s what I was doing by asking my questions.”

Those questions, however, were more like accusations. He said the victims themselves were still alive and accused victims’ family members of being crisis actors, including Jeremy Richman, the father of victim Avielle Richman.

Jeremy died last month of suicide at age 49.

For the record, Halbig said he also has doubts about the 2018 shooting at Marjorie Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland.

“If I’m wrong about my questions, I promise you I will run as fast as I can to a mental hospital,” he said. “If I am wrong, I really need serious help. I’ll apologize, I’ll put up a billboard in Connecticut saying, ‘I’m sorry for all of the pain I caused you.’”

His drive was ignited around Christmas in 2013, he said. According to an incident report, Halbig told the Lake County Sheriff’s Office that two plainclothes deputies showed up to his home and threatened to arrest him if he didn’t stop looking into the Sandy Hook massacre.

“They lit a fire under me,” he said.

As for pending lawsuits, Halbig said he isn’t concerned. He thinks they’ll dissipate.

Halbig is representing himself. He said he can’t afford legal representation because he doesn’t have any money left after his years of research. Halbig’s websites and social media accounts where he solicited donations are no longer. GoFundMe kicked him off its platform.

But Halbig is hoping to get the attention of Jones’ legal team.

He recently wrote an email to Norm Pattis, an attorney for Jones, with “facts not opinions” to support his theories.

Among them: Halbig said he has evidence that 6-year-old Emilie Parker is still alive and that Sandy Hook was actually closed during the shooting.

“I hope you and Alex are not cowards?” Halbig wrote.

Halbig said he doesn’t recognize this new Jones, who in the deposition said that a “form of psychosis” made him believe that events like Sandy Hook were staged. Jones also said he knows not all of the information Halbig provided him was accurate.

“That’s not the Alex Jones everybody knows and sees on InfoWars,” Halbig said. “He’s acting like he’s on a stage. He’s not combative. I’m telling you there’s something wrong with him.”