John McAfee, an eccentric software creator, was found dead in his prison cell in Spain last Thursday in an apparent suicide after Spanish courts reportedly agreed to extradite him to the United States.
McAfee was arrested in October of 2020 at El Prat airport in Barcelona at the request of the US Justice Department.
McAfee was accused of evading millions of dollars in taxes from money made crypto trading.
According to the Associated Press, John McAfee had a suicide note in his pocket when he was found hanging in a Spanish prison cell.
Authorities in Spain are conducting an autopsy on McAfee’s body but have said that everything at the scene in his cell indicated that the 75-year-old killed himself.
An official source familiar with the investigation told The Associated Press that a suicide note had been found in McAfee’s pocket. The source, who was not authorized to speak about an ongoing judicial inquiry, refused to comment on the content of the note.
McAfee’s Spanish lawyer, Javier Villalba, said that the family had not been informed by authorities about the note.
Last Thursday John McAfee’s widow spoke to reporters.
Janice McAfee blamed US authorities for his death.
“John McAfee was not suicidal. I spoke with him a few hours before he was found dead… I blame the US authorities for this tragedy. Because of these politically-motivated charges against him my husband is now dead. His last words to me were, “I love you and I will call you in the evening.” Those words are not words of someone who is suicidal. All ‘Jo’ wanted to do was spend his remaining years fishing and drinking. He did not deserve to die in a filthy prison like a caged animal… He would never quit this way. He would never take his life in this way. I don’t believe he did this and I will get answers,” Janice told reporters last week.
John McAfee previously warned the US government was gunning for him: “If I suicide myself, I didn’t. I was whackd. Check my right arm,” McAfee said in a November 2019 tweet with a photo of his “$WHACKD” tattoo.
Getting subtle messages from U.S. officials saying, in effect: “We’re coming for you McAfee! We’re going to kill yourself”. I got a tattoo today just in case. If I suicide myself, I didn’t. I was whackd. Check my right arm.$WHACKD available only on https://t.co/HdSEYi9krq:) pic.twitter.com/rJ0Vi2Hpjj
— John McAfee (@officialmcafee) November 30, 2019
