Founder of McAfee Antivirus, John McAfee, was found dead in his cell in a Spanish jail while awaiting extradition to the US, his lawyer and the Spanish Interior Ministry have confirmed his death.
McAfee, 75, rose to fame for his namesake antivirus software firm he started in the 1980s and later sold it in the mid-90s. He faced several security and fraud charges, and extradition to the US at the time of his death.
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The tech entrepreneur was indicted in the US for tax evasion after allegedly failing to declare millions earned promoting cryptocurrencies, consulting work, speaking engagements, and the sales of the rights to his life story for a documentary.
According to US prosecutors, McAfee hid assets from the Internal Revenue Service, including real estate property, a vehicle, a yacht, and others in other people's names. The indictment alleged that he evaded taxes and willfully failed to file returns from 2014 to 2018, despite receiving "considerable income" from several sources.
He also risked 30 years in prison if convicted over charges brought by the security and exchange commission, alleging that he made over $23.1 million in undisclosed compensation from false and misleading cryptocurrency recommendations.
McAfee's problems didn't end there. In 2012, he became a subject of interest following the unsolved death of a neighbour in Belize. He denied any involvement in the murder and expressed worry that he may have been the attacker's intended target.
He later fled Belize when the police found him to be living with a 17-year-old girl and discovered a large arsenal of weapons at his home.
The anti-virus software maker also arrested in 2015 in the US for driving while possessing a gun. In July 2019, he was arrested in the Dominican Republic with five others while traveling on a yacht with high-caliber weapons, ammunition, and military-style gear.
McAfee lived a lavish and eccentric lifestyle. He built nine homes filled with expensive art and artifacts (including a dinosaur skull), bought a fleet of planes and antique cars before he was hit hard by the Great Recession, and sold off most of his assets.