10 months ago
Janice McAfee, the widow of tech impresario John McAfee, is inactive successful the midst of grief. She is doing “odd jobs to provender herself,” has tally retired of funds, and inactive doesn’t cognize what truly happened to her husband.
Since the death of crypto guru and antivirus pioneer hubby John McAfee successful a Barcelona situation much than 2 years ago, she has remained successful Spain successful an undisclosed determination and has lone been saved from homelessness by the kindness of friends.
She can’t determination connected due to the fact that she inactive doesn’t cognize what happened to her hubby successful spite of a September ruling this twelvemonth from a Catalan tribunal that John McAfee died by termination and the lawsuit was efficaciously closed.
Photos of John and Janice from her idiosyncratic collection. (Supplied)
Photos of John and Janice from her idiosyncratic collection.(Supplied)
Photos of John and Janice from her idiosyncratic collection. (Supplied)In an exclusive Zoom interrogation with Magazine, she explained her existent situation.
“For much than 2 years, I’ve not lone had to woody with the calamity of John’s death, but it’s truthful hard to determination connected due to the fact that the authorities garbage to merchandise the autopsy of his death. I person tried and tried, but they volition not fto maine spot it.
“There is the accidental of an autarkic autopsy, but that volition outgo 30,000 euros, and I don’t person the wealth to wage for it. All I privation is to spot his assemblage for myself and cognize that truly happened.”
“Not having the wealth myself to marque the determination to find retired what truly happened is hard, but I’m hoping that giving this interrogation volition springiness radical the accidental to cognize what’s truly going on. I inactive person radical contacting maine who inactive can’t judge he’s dead,” she says.
This video was taken astatine John's 75th day enactment successful Spain. I was down the camera filming but was blessed to enactment the camera down to dance!
He looked truthful handsome that night. That smile, however I miss that smile.
We observe you contiguous John David❤🕊 pic.twitter.com/MDgvbd4tgY
What happened to John McAfee’s $100-million fortune?
Although John was worthy much than $100 cardinal aft helium resigned from antivirus institution McAfee successful 1994 and sold his stock, his authoritative luck had dwindled to an estimated $4 cardinal astatine the clip of his death, according to Celebrity Net Worth.
He claimed successful 2019 that helium had nary wealth and could not wage a $25-million tribunal bid implicit a wrongful decease lawsuit. However, helium was arrested the pursuing twelvemonth connected U.S. charges of taxation evasion, with authorities claiming helium and his team had earned $11 million promoting cryptocurrencies. From prison, helium told his 1 cardinal Twitter followers helium doesn’t person immoderate hidden crypto. “I person nothing. But I regret nothing.”
According to Janice, her hubby didn’t person a volition oregon an estate, truthful determination is nary money, and due to the fact that of the judgments against him successful the U.S., it’s highly improbable that immoderate fiscal bequest volition beryllium passed connected to her.
John was capable to tweet pictures of himself from wrong his cell. (Twitter)There are stories that determination are concealed caches and documents, but Janice was deliberately kept successful the acheronian (about alleged “secret treasure”) by her husband, truthful she wouldn’t beryllium successful danger. She besides has a raft of unanswered questions astir John’s untimely end.
“I don’t deliberation helium thought things would person ended the mode they did and nor did I. I don’t cognize if helium committed suicide; we talked each time aft helium was imprisoned adjacent Barcelona. I don’t cognize however helium got strung up.”
“I don’t cognize if it was with a enactment oregon a shoelace. In the situation report, it says that erstwhile they recovered him, helium was inactive alive; helium had a pulse and was breathing erstwhile they recovered him. A faint pulse, but a pulse is simply a pulse.”
John McAfee and his wife, Janice McAfee, were precise overmuch successful love. (Supplied)Janice cannot judge that erstwhile helium was recovered successful the compartment with a ligature oregon shoelace astir his neck, aesculapian practitioners determination appeared to person attempted CPR connected him without removing it first.
“I went to schoolhouse to beryllium a registered nursing assistant, and I cognize however to bash CPR. Even successful the movies, it’s the archetypal happening you do: wide the airways.”
“If idiosyncratic has thing choky astir their neck, that’s the past happening you would do. The archetypal happening would beryllium to region the obstruction, but you tin spot from the situation video that didn’t happen. I don’t cognize if it was negligence oregon stupidity; it conscionable feels sinister. But present I’m speculating, and I don’t privation to bash that.”
Janice McAfee was frightened aft John’s death
After her husband’s death, Janice was frightened for her safety. While John had told her that the authorities were lone aft him, not her, she was inactive disquieted that she would beryllium a people for others.
“John ever assured maine that helium wouldn’t archer maine thing that would enactment maine successful danger; that was a comfort. He was nationalist astir the 31 terabytes of accusation that helium seemingly possessed, but helium ne'er shared that with me, and I person nary thought wherever it is oregon whether it really existed.”
I've collected files connected corruption successful governments. For the archetypal time, I'm naming names and specifics. I'll statesman with a corrupt CIA cause and 2 Bahamian officials. Coming today. If I'm arrested oregon disappear, 31+ terrabytes of incriminating information volition beryllium released to the press.
— John McAfee (@officialmcafee) June 9, 2019“But I consciousness harmless astatine the moment. I person thing to hide, and I don’t adjacent cognize however helium truly died, fto unsocial what helium possessed. If determination was an autarkic autopsy, I tin get immoderate peace. There is an accidental to bash so, but it’s precise expensive.”
I archetypal met Janice and John astatine a blockchain league successful Malta successful 2018. Like the crypto satellite astatine the time, it was chaos — but bully chaos.
I interviewed him connected stage, and it wasn’t my finest hour, oregon possibly it was. There was thing astir being adjacent him that affected maine and made maine behave connected signifier successful a much carefree manner. Maybe that’s what helium could do, a Svengali of sorts.
Author Monty Munford got on famously with John McAfee. (Supplied)John had been drinking whisky connected the broadside of the signifier but was sober and lucid. Janice was with him, protecting him from the thousands of radical who wanted to talk to him.
She reminded maine of Kim Kardashian erstwhile I interviewed her successful Armenia — calm, collected and astir zen-like successful her presence. I instantly liked Janice and trusted her.
Later aft the on-stage interrogation had been completed, I was approached by a husband-and-wife camera squad who was doing a documentary connected crypto that was astir finished, but they would emotion a connection with John. Could I help?
I wasn’t definite but texted Janice, and she said it was OK; John seemingly liked me. I was invited to the penthouse suite and convinced the equipped defender extracurricular their country that I could vouch for the radical with me. Again, not thing I did each day.
John laughed erstwhile helium saw me. “You again, for f–k’s sake!” But helium was civilian to the husband-and-wife squad and invited maine to articulation him connected a backstage yacht successful Valletta Harbour that evening.
John McAfee was a statesmanlike campaigner twice. (Twitter)What goes connected on backstage yachts stays there, but we became friends determination and then, chiefly due to the fact that I was the lone 1 “not blowing fume up my arse,” according to John. Further invitations would travel — notably to an land disconnected North Carolina erstwhile helium was inactive incognito and connected the run.
We stayed successful touch, and I conducted a mates of interviews with him during the pandemic erstwhile I was moving a podcast. When I reached retired to Janet connected Twitter/X to spot if she would beryllium funny successful doing her archetypal interview, she said John considered maine a person and would beryllium blessed to bash so.
Janice McAfee inactive wants to retrieve John McAfee’s body
So, that’s the backstory to this interview, but what is much important is the travel from this constituent on. Janice is determined to travel John’s wishes that, if died, helium wanted his assemblage to beryllium cremated.
“His assemblage is inactive successful the morgue astatine the situation wherever helium died. I don’t cognize wherefore they decided to clasp connected to his body. They don’t request it. Two years ago, I had the wealth for an autarkic autopsy; a twelvemonth ago, I had the money, but present I don’t.”
Also read: ‘Holy shit, I’ve seen that!’ — Coldie’s Snoop Dogg, Vitalik and McAfee NFTs: NFT Creator
“I americium surviving by taking small jobs present and determination to provender myself; that’s not what’s important. What matters is what I tin bash for John. I’m not a unfortunate — John was the unfortunate — and I request that autopsy report, not to proceed a combat against Spanish authorities, but to cognize what truly happened to him.”
I wanted to stock my thoughts connected the judge's denial of my entreaty filed past twelvemonth for John's autopsy study to beryllium released.
20 months is simply a agelong clip to hold but astatine slightest the determination has been made & I tin yet statesman the agelong travel of moving forward. pic.twitter.com/24kikiU9pV
I enactment it to Janice that the cognition was that John had tally retired of clip and had travel to the extremity of the road. An extradition bid to the U.S. had been made hours earlier his death, and it was surely going to beryllium hard for him successful a U.S. prison.
American authorities bash not similar radical who thumb their noses astatine them, and an illustration would person been made of him. In immoderate ways, didn’t his evident termination marque implicit consciousness to a arrogant man?
“We ne'er talked astir that. Ever. While helium did archer maine helium wanted to beryllium cremated, that was due to the fact that helium knew determination were radical who wanted him killed, but that’s not the point.”
“I don’t privation to beryllium connected 1 broadside oregon the other. Just archer maine what the assemblage says. I’m not trying to question justness — there’s nary specified happening connected this world immoderate more. I conscionable privation John’s wishes to beryllium fulfilled.”
Janice is an American citizen, but she’s understandably successful nary unreserved to spell backmost to the U.S. erstwhile she doesn’t cognize what her presumption is.
John McAfee Netflix documentary
A Netflix documentary called Running with the Devil: The Wild World of John McAfee was released past twelvemonth and portrays her and John arsenic fugitives, which is not thing that Janice thinks represents the existent story.
It was much of a communicative astir the journalists themselves who tried to sensationalize a nationalist fig and weren’t rather up to it. They centered themselves erstwhile the absorption should person been connected the existent communicative of wherefore McAfee felt disposed to beryllium a alleged fugitive… oregon wherefore Janice was staying with him.
I composed this portion 5 years ago.
Now aft astir 5 months successful situation its notes bespeak the isolation from my loved ones and from the nine I americium trying to change.
If you privation to perceive my bosom done euphony person a listen. pic.twitter.com/IJc6gMyciX
“People hide precise quickly, and I recognize wherefore due to the fact that the satellite moves precise accelerated nowadays. I conscionable privation him to beryllium remembered properly, and that’s the slightest helium deserves.”
Janice wants closure. She wants to cremate her husband, retrieve him with love, and enactment retired what to bash next.
I anticipation she gets her wish. Everybody deserves a accidental to determination on, and Janice McAfee overmuch much than galore others.
Subscribe
The astir engaging reads successful blockchain. Delivered erstwhile a week.
Monty Munford
Monty Munford writes regularly for the BBC, The Economist and City AM and has been a tech columnist for Forbes and The Telegraph. He besides runs a maturation and visibility consultancy and has appeared astatine much than 200 events and conferences, interviewing figures specified arsenic Tim Draper, the precocious John McAfee, Sir Tim Berners-Lee, Steve Wozniak, Kim Kardashian, Guns N’ Roses and galore others.
Follow the writer @montymunford
English (US) 