John McAfee's widow says he was not suicidal after losing extradition fight


Simon Rushton
  • English
  • Arabic

The widow of software mogul John McAfee blamed US authorities on Friday for his death in a Spanish prison, where he was awaiting extradition to America, and said he was not suicidal.

Janice McAfee said she wanted a thorough investigation into the circumstances surrounding the death of the 75-year-old, which occurred in his prison cell on Wednesday in what the authorities said was an apparent suicide by hanging.

Speaking outside the Barcelona-area Brians 2 jail, where her husband had been held since October, she said she had last spoken to him a few hours before he was found 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," she said, holding back tears.

"I blame the US authorities for this tragedy. Because of these politically motivated charges against him, my husband is now dead," she said.


Calling her husband a fighter who "had hope things would work out", Ms McAfee added: "I don't believe he did this. I will get answers."
The US embassy has said it is monitoring the Spanish investigation into his death.

"We are closely monitoring local authorities' investigation into the cause of death, and stand ready to provide all appropriate assistance to the family. Out of respect to the family during this difficult time, we have no further comment," a representative said.

John McAfee's wife Janice outside the Brians 2 prison. AP
John McAfee's wife Janice outside the Brians 2 prison. AP

British-born McAfee, who launched the world's first commercial antivirus in 1987, was detained last October at Barcelona airport, after living for years on the run from US authorities.

He was indicted in Tennessee on tax evasion charges and was charged in a cryptocurrency fraud case in New York.

McAfee's lawyer, Javier Villalba, said the family was awaiting the results of an official autopsy, but he would request a second, independent autopsy on instruction from the McAfee family.
"Even though he was born in England, America was his home," Ms McAfee said. "He came there when he was a child. He had his first girlfriend there, his first case, you know, his first job.
"He made his first millions there and he wanted to be there. But, you know, politics just wouldn't allow for that to happen.

"All John wanted to do was spend his remaining years fishing and drinking," his widow said
"He was just so loving. He had a big heart and he just loved people and he just wanted to have peace in his life," she added. "My prayers are that his soul has found the peace in death that he could not find in life."

Living in...

This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home. 

Company%20profile
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EName%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20WallyGPT%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E2014%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounders%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESaeid%20and%20Sami%20Hejazi%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Dubai%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ESector%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EFinTech%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestment%20raised%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E%247.1%20million%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ENumber%20of%20staff%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2020%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestment%20stage%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EPre-seed%20round%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
UPI facts

More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions

What are NFTs?

Are non-fungible tokens a currency, asset, or a licensing instrument? Arnab Das, global market strategist EMEA at Invesco, says they are mix of all of three.

You can buy, hold and use NFTs just like US dollars and Bitcoins. “They can appreciate in value and even produce cash flows.”

However, while money is fungible, NFTs are not. “One Bitcoin, dollar, euro or dirham is largely indistinguishable from the next. Nothing ties a dollar bill to a particular owner, for example. Nor does it tie you to to any goods, services or assets you bought with that currency. In contrast, NFTs confer specific ownership,” Mr Das says.

This makes NFTs closer to a piece of intellectual property such as a work of art or licence, as you can claim royalties or profit by exchanging it at a higher value later, Mr Das says. “They could provide a sustainable income stream.”

This income will depend on future demand and use, which makes NFTs difficult to value. “However, there is a credible use case for many forms of intellectual property, notably art, songs, videos,” Mr Das says.