Ray Epps, a man at the center of several elaborate conspiracy theories, has filed a lawsuit against Fox News, who accused Epps of being a federal agent.
Ray Epps Sues Fox News…
The name Ray Epps is much known among viewers of Tucker Carlson’s old Fox News show, and others who believe in conspiracies related to January 6. Epps, an Arizona resident, is a conservative who supported Donald Trump and voted for him in both 2016 and 2020, was a member of the Oath Keepers militia, and was present at January 6.
But according to conspiracy theories floated by Carlson prior to his firing by Fox News earlier this year, Epps was in fact a government agent or informant who incited the January 6 attack itself. These conspiracy theories resulted from Epps, unlike many other January 6 participants, not having been arrested.
“No matter how many times they push this conspiracy theory, this lie, it’ll never become truth,” Epps told 60 Minutes in an interview in April. “Truth stands on its own. What I’m telling you is the truth.”
The FBI added, in the same report, that “Ray Epps has never been an FBI source or an FBI employee.”
Now, Epps has filed a lawsuit against both Fox News, accusing them of defamation. The suit comes a few months after Fox paid $787.5 million to settle a lawsuit with Dominion Voting System, in a suit that unearthed numerous damning text messages from Carlson; shortly after the suit was filed, Fox fired Carlson.
The suit, like the Dominion one, was filed in Delaware. Epps had previously filed a cease-and-desist related to Carlson’s commentary.
“In the aftermath of the events of January 6th, Fox News searched for a scapegoat to blame other than Donald Trump or the Republican Party,” the lawsuit begins by stating.
“Eventually, they turned on one of their own, telling a fantastical story in which Ray Epps who was a Trump supporter that participated in the protests on January 6th was an undercover FBI agent and was responsible for the mob that violently broke into the Capitol and interfered with the peaceful transition of power for the first time in this country’s history.”
The suit, which runs for 53 pages, also accuses Fox of amplifying election conspiracy theories, including the one involving Dominion that led to the lawsuit. Fox hosts had also accused another voting machine company, Smartmatic, of wrongdoing, and Smartmatic has sued them as well.
It also states that Epps and his wife, at least partially on the strength of what they watched on Fox, “were persuaded by the lies broadcast by Fox asserting that the election had been stolen to exercise their perceived responsibilities as patriotic citizens to gather in the nation’s Capitol on January 6, 2021, to ‘stop the steal.’”
The suit goes on to accuse both Fox and Carlson of “a years-long campaign spreading falsehoods about Epps [which have] destroyed Ray’s and Robyn’s lives.”
Following the Fox reports, members of Congress, including Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX), have also raised questions about Epps. In addition, the New York Times reported, some online retailers have even begun selling t-shirts with the slogan “Arrest Ray Epps.”
Just Wednesday, in fact, when FBI Director Christopher Wray testified before the House Judiciary Committee, and Rep. Troy Nehls (R-TX) asked Wray if the FBI would be arresting Epps.
“Now look into the camera, sir, when you answer my next question,” Nehls said. “Are you going to arrest Mr. Epps, yes or no?”
“If you don’t arrest Mr. Epps, there’s a reason behind it. I believe you know what it is, and it appears to me you are protecting this guy. I strongly recommend you get your house back in order,” the Congressman said.
Wray responded that “I’m not going to engage here in a discussion about individual people who are or are not going to be prosecuted.”
The lawsuit also alleges that Epps was told, in May, that he was notified by the Department of Justice that he will in fact face criminal charges, although none have arrived as of yet.
Expertise and Experience
Stephen Silver is a Senior Editor for 19FortyFive. He is an award-winning journalist, essayist and film critic, who is also a contributor to the Philadelphia Inquirer, the Jewish Telegraphic Agency, Broad Street Review and Splice Today. The co-founder of the Philadelphia Film Critics Circle, Stephen lives in suburban Philadelphia with his wife and two sons. Follow him on Twitter at @StephenSilver.
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