Anti-virus software creator John McAfee dies in Spanish prison
MADRID, Spain — John McAfee, the creator of the McAfee antivirus software, has been found dead in his cell in a jail near Barcelona, a government official has told The Associated Press.
Authorities did not disclose the cause of death. Earlier Wednesday, a Spanish court issued a preliminary ruling in favor of his extradition to the United States to face tax-related criminal charges.
Security personnel at the Brians 2 penitentiary near the northeastern Spanish city tried to revive McAfee, who was 75, but the jail’s medical team finally certified his death, the regional Catalan government said.
Federal prosecutors in New York, where McAfee had been charged with securities fraud, declined ABC News’ request for comment shortly after the news broke.
Between November 2017 and February 2018, McAfee leveraged his fame as a computer programmer to make more than $23 million by recommending a number of “initial coin offerings” to his Twitter followers, federal prosecutors said.
The problem, according to prosecutors, was that McAfee failed to disclose he was a paid pitchman and promoting an investment product without disclosing you’re being paid to do so is unlawful.
McAfee was arrested in Spain last year for tax evasion.
The tech entrepreneur lived a lavish and eccentric lifestyle — he built nine homes filled with expensive art and artifacts (including a dinosaur skull), and bought a fleet of planes and antique cars at one point before he was hit hard by the Great Recession and liquidated most of his assets, per his 2017 ABC News interview.
At one point he was a “person of interest” in a Belize murder case, and when he was set to be deported to Belize he claims he faked a heart attack. He was never arrested or charged in connection with the death, and has denied any involvement.
McAfee also ran to become the Libertarian Party candidate for president in 2016.
He is survived by his wife, Janice McAfee. In his final tweet, John McAfee retweeted a Father’s Day message posted by his wife to his 1 million followers.
“Though you are spending the day in prison know that you are loved and appreciated,” his wife’s post stated.
