John McAfee, the anti-virus software entrepreneur was found dead in Spanish prison cell hours after the Spanish court gave a verdict to extradite him to America for the tax evasion charges against him.
A controversial personality in the world of technology, a tech prodigy; his company was the first ever to release an anti-virus software.
Mcafee was found hanged in his prison cell, according to the Catalan justice department, the paramedical staff tried to resuscitate him, but he was gone.
John McAfee was 75 years old.
Mcafee VirusScan rose to fame before the interweb times and it laid the foundation for a multi-billion-dollar industry within the computer world.
The anti-virus company was later on sold to technology giant intel for almost $7.6 billion.
John McAfee was arrested in October 2020 in Spain while boarding a plane for Turkey, for the charges of failure to file tax returns for four years; despite having an earning in millions through his motivational speaking engagements, consultancy work, cryptocurrencies, and his sold business.
He was wanted in America as the US Justice Department had allegedly summoned McAfee to pay off the tax liability of 8 years for his income in bank accounts, different cryptocurrency exchange accounts, etc.
The US department of justice had allegedly claimed that McAfee made over $23 million but evaded taxes and failed to file tax returns. He was also charged by the southern district of New York for money laundering conspiracy crimes and fraud with two different cryptocurrency schemes which netted almost $13 million.
McAfee was also charged for concealing his various assets such as his real estate properties and a yacht; all concealed in different people’s names.
McAfee had claimed multiple times that there is a plot against him to kill him and he is being dragged into court for ideological or political reasons.
His last tweet dated June 18 stated “in a democracy, power is given not taken. But it is still powerful. Love, compassion, and caring have no use for it. But it is fuel for greed, hostility, jealousy… all power corrupts. Take care which powers you allow a democracy to wield.”
The tech entrepreneur hailed from Gloucestershire, England, and was first noticed in the late 1980s when he founded his own tech company and released the McAfee Virus scan. His company is the pioneer of computer security.
McAfee also tried his hands on politics and had unsuccessful bids of launching his career as a politician; he tried to become a presidential candidate for the libertarian party in 2016 and 2020.
McAfee – a prodigy
John McAfee never really fit into the mold of a tech entrepreneur. He was always reckless and brash, falling into scandals one after another.
He was wildly successful because of his company and he helped create a multi-billion-dollar security software industry. McAfee was exceptionally visionary but it was his temperament that landed him into hot waters throughout his life.
He was arrested in Guatemala in 2012 in connection with his neighbor’s death. He denied any involvement.
McAfee was a very prominent libertarian, a crypto enthusiast, and an amazing speaker and he was still a money churning machine. It was his alleged tax evasion that made him flee America.
John McAfee will always be remembered as one of the most important figures in the development of technology in the late 1980s and 1990s. A controversial figure but a visionary person who had a larger-than-life personality.
