Antivirus pioneer John McAfee was found dead in his prison cell in Barcelona, according to Reuters and Spanish news media. El País reported that the cause is believed to be suicide.
The Spanish High Court had ruled Wednesday that McAfee would be allowed to be extradited from Spain to the U.S. where he faced tax evasion charges. McAfee had been arrested in Spain in October while trying to board a flight from Barcelona to Istanbul.
The DOJ's indictment said that he had failed to file tax returns from 2014 to 2018 despite receiving "considerable income" at the time. He was also indicted in March on separate charges related to an alleged "pump-and-dump" cryptocurrency scheme. The SEC had also charged McAfee for fraudulently touting ICOs in a scheme that netted him more than $23 million.
McAfee was an antivirus software pioneer, founding his pseudonymous company in 1987 before resigning in 1994. He didn't stay out of the headlines though, and in 2012, was investigated by Belizean police over connections to the murder of his neighbor.
He also tried running for president twice, including a 2016 bid to represent the Libertarian Party under a newly-formed "crypto party" and again in 2020 under a crypto platform.
McAfee seemed to address his criminal cases through a tweet on his official page from June 16, which he pinned to his profile. "The US believes I have hidden crypto. I wish I did but it has dissolved through the many hands of Team McAfee (your belief is not required), and my remaining assets are all seized. My friends evaporated through fear of association," the tweet from McAfee's account said. "I have nothing. Yet, I regret nothing."
This story is breaking and will be updated.
Climate TRACE's data show emissions at the facility-level.Image: Climate TRACE