John McAfee, the creator of the McAfee anti-virus computer software, has been found dead in a prison cell. According to the Associated Press, McAfee was discovered by officials at the Brians 2 penitentiary, where he was being held in, near Barcelona. At this time, CNBC reports that “McAfee’s lawyer told Reuters that McAfee apparently hanged himself.” The news outlet notes that security personnel attempted to revived 75-year-old McAfee but were unable to. The prison’s medical team eventually certified his death.
Notably, there had just been in a preliminary hearing, hours earlier, where it was ruled that McAfee could be extradited to the United States. He was to face criminal charges on alleged tax-related crimes. The initial statement about the death of an inmate at the prison did not specifically identify McAfee by name but did include details that were only unique to his case.
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John McAfee, the controversial antivirus software magnate who’d had multiple recent run-ins with the US law, has died at 75. McAfee was awaiting extradition in a Spanish prison after being charged with tax evasion in the United States last year. https://t.co/pxpdiLV3uv
— CNN (@CNN) June 23, 2021
In October, McAfee was arrested at Barcelona’s international airport, on the U.S. charges, which are still pending in Tennessee. “From 2014 to 2018, McAfee allegedly failed to file tax returns, despite receiving considerable income from these sources,” the U.S. Justice Department stated in a previous filing. Separately, McAfee was also charged in a Manhattan federal court for an alleged “pump-and-dump” scheme involving cryptocurrencies.
McAfee was a computer programming mogul who lived a very eccentric life. After selling his antivirus software company, which he named after himself, he attempted to run for President. On two different occasions, McAfee made a bid to land the Presidential nomination for the Libertarian party.
In 2019, McAfee and five other people were detained in the Dominican Republic. At the time, Caribbean island officials stated that the group was suspected of carrying high-caliber weapons while traveling on a yacht. The officials also stated they suspected there was ammunition and military-style gear.
McAfee maintained his social media presence over the years, but his wife Janice took over while he was behind bars. The last post on McAfee’s Twitter account was from Father’s Day, and it was a retweet from Janice’s account. “These eight months John has spent in prison in Spain have been especially hard on his overall health both mentally and physically, as well as financially,” the post read in part. It added that McAfee was “undeterred from continuing to speak truth to power.”
