- Dec 30, 2012
- 4,809
“Next thing you know the world is after me. I’m on the run and then I’m in jail in Guatemala.”
The peculiarity that John McAfee, once hero of the cyber security, world has been vilified in recent years is not lost on the antivirus founder.
“There is a great deal of irony. My problem in Belize stems from the fact I was hacking into Belizean government computers, looking for proof that they were setting me up for a bribe. Instead I found the horrible proof of murder, and drug dealing, and human trafficking.
“This is what happens when you try and address something that changes the status quo of a political system. You better prepare to be crucified.”
The McAfee I meet is not the man I imagined. The former Guatemalan jail inmate, drug addled, gun-wielding party boy and alleged murderer described in various media reports, is polite and polished - if slightly nervous.
The 70-year-old made for some bizarre headlines when a gaggle of underage girlfriends, a list of ex-wives and an insatiable drug habit culminated in a series of unfortunate events two years’ ago, when is neighbour was found killed in his back garden in Belize. A prime suspect, McAfee went on the run, towing several journalists and a film producer along to document the chaos. “I had to say something, so I spoke out to the press”, he explains.
Further Reading
The peculiarity that John McAfee, once hero of the cyber security, world has been vilified in recent years is not lost on the antivirus founder.
“There is a great deal of irony. My problem in Belize stems from the fact I was hacking into Belizean government computers, looking for proof that they were setting me up for a bribe. Instead I found the horrible proof of murder, and drug dealing, and human trafficking.
“This is what happens when you try and address something that changes the status quo of a political system. You better prepare to be crucified.”
The McAfee I meet is not the man I imagined. The former Guatemalan jail inmate, drug addled, gun-wielding party boy and alleged murderer described in various media reports, is polite and polished - if slightly nervous.
The 70-year-old made for some bizarre headlines when a gaggle of underage girlfriends, a list of ex-wives and an insatiable drug habit culminated in a series of unfortunate events two years’ ago, when is neighbour was found killed in his back garden in Belize. A prime suspect, McAfee went on the run, towing several journalists and a film producer along to document the chaos. “I had to say something, so I spoke out to the press”, he explains.
Further Reading