John McAfee Flamboyant tech-enterpreneur and founder of McAfee anti-virus software has been found dead in his cell in Spain, the media reported.
According to The Guardian, the 75-year-old McAfee was found dead hours after the country's highest court approved his extradition to the US, where he was wanted on tax-related criminal charges that carry a prison sentence of up to 30 years.
McAfee was arrested last October at Barcelona's international airport as he was about to board a flight to Istanbul.
In a statement, the Catalan justice department said that prison officers and medics had tried to save the life of a 75-year-old man but had been unsuccessful. After attempts to save him failed, he was pronounced dead.
"Judicial staff have been dispatched to the prison and are investigating the causes of death," the statement said, adding that "Everything points to death by suicide.
Amid reports of McAfee's alleged death by suicide, his December 2019 tweet claiming that he will never die by suicide has gone viral. In his tweet McAfee claimed that if he ever died by suicide it meant that he did not and was actually "whacked". He had also alleged that the US government might be trying to kill him.
The aforementioned tweet was also amplified by Wikileaks and other social media users who drew parallels with the alleged prison suicide of Jeffrey Epstein.
The McAfee Anti-virus was the first commercial anti-virus software launched back in 1987. It was eventually sold off to Intel in 2011.
McAfee claimed to be a Liberatarian by ideology had publicly announced in 2019 that he had not paid Income Tax in the US for years for ideological reasons and then purportedly fled the country to avoid trial.
McAfee then went on to live on his megayatch along with his wife, four dogs and armed guards.
He had claimed to have fathered at least 47 children throughout his life and met his current wife after she solicited him for prostitution. He was also wanted for alleged cryptocurrency related fraud and had expressed his interest in running for US President on a Liberatarian Party ticket.
(With inputs from IANS)
An Appeal...
Dear Reader,
As you are no doubt aware, Swarajya is a media product that is directly dependent on support from its readers in the form of subscriptions. We do not have the muscle and backing of a large media conglomerate nor are we playing for the large advertisement sweep-stake.
Our business model is you and your subscription. And in challenging times like these, we need your support now more than ever.
We deliver over 10 - 15 high quality articles with expert insights and views. From 7AM in the morning to 10PM late night we operate to ensure you, the reader, get to see what is just right.
Becoming a Patron or a subscriber for as little as Rs 1200/year is the best way you can support our efforts.