Antivirus pioneer John McAfee found dead in Spanish prison

A file photo of McAfee. The creator of the antivirus named after him has been found dead in a cell of a jail near Barcelona, a government source told The Associated Press on June 23, 2021 on the same day that a Spanish court issued a preliminary ruling in favor of his extradition to the US to face tax-related criminal charges. — AP

MADRID: John McAfee, the creator of McAfee antivirus software, was found dead in his jail cell near Barcelona in an apparent suicide on June 23, hours after a Spanish court approved his extradition to the United States to face tax charges punishable by decades in prison, authorities said.

The eccentric cryptocurrency promoter and tax opponent whose history of legal troubles spanned from Tennessee to Central America to the Caribbean was discovered at the Brians 2 penitentiary in northeastern Spain. Security personnel tried to revive him, but the jail’s medical team finally certified his death, a statement from the regional Catalan government said.