The widow of the late antivirus pioneer John McAfee has denied a report that her husband was suicidal after squandering his $100million fortune through bad real estate investments, including several mansions whose values tanked.
Janice McAfee took to Twitter on Saturday, insisting that her husband ‘never felt more free’ despite going broke after amassing a real estate portfolio whose value crashed as a result of the Great Recession.
She said John McAfee was quite open about his financial troubles.
He revealed the extent to which he blew through his fortune in interviews with Mark Eglinton, an author who wrote a book about the eccentric millionaire's attempt to flee arrest by the feds.
'John spoke about being broke numerous times in interviews as well as tweeting about it,' Janice McAfee tweeted on Saturday.
John McAfee, the antivirus software pioneer, was not suicidal after blowing through his $100million fortune, according to his widow. McAfee is seen above in Malta in November 2018
Janice McAfee (left), John's widow, took to Twitter to refute claims her husband was suicidal over his financial state
'John spoke about being broke numerous times in interviews as well as tweeting about it,' Janice McAfee tweeted on Saturday
'This was not John's first time being without money & he was not suicidal because of it.
'Actually it was quite the opposite. He never felt more free.'
According to Eglinton's new book, John McAfee blew his $100 million fortune on 'bizarre' mansions and really was broke when he died in a Spanish prison.
Soon before his death on June 23, McAfee claimed in a tweet that he had no hidden cash and was worth 'nothing' - though he had ample reason to conceal his wealth, with the US government seeking to seize his assets on charges of tax evasion.
In addition to the feds, the question of McAfee's estate is also of interest to his family, including Janice, who insists that his death may not have been a suicide, as Spanish authorities found.
Eglinton, who collaborated with McAfee on a book for six months while he was on the run from authorities, told DailyMail.com that he believes McAfee was indeed penniless, citing his personal experience with the outlaw and extensive interviews with him.
Eglinton, whose upcoming book No Domain: The John McAfee Tapes documents his extensive interviews with the outlaw, said that McAfee was unable to pay what he requested for the planned collaboration, which will now be authored by Eglinton solely.
'I don't doubt that if he could have helped he would have,' Eglinton said of the modest advance fee he requested. 'He said, "I can't do it, my financial situation is worse than yours."'
McAfee, once worth $100 million, really was broke when he died in a Spanish prison, according to an author who collaborated with him
McAfee is seen with his wife and staunch supporter Janice. The US government was seeking to seize any of his assets, and questions have swirled around his finances after his death
McAfee's massive $25 million compound in Colorado (above) sold at auction for a mere $5.72 million to a Chicago commodities trader in 2007, as real estate crashed in the recession
Janice McAfee did not respond to a request for comment from DailyMail.com about her late husband's estate, and his legal plans for the estate have not been made public.
Eglinton said he interviewed McAfee for countless hours over Skype starting in August of 2019, when McAfee was on the run, fearing a pending US indictment on charges of tax evasion, which was unsealed upon his arrest last October.
McAfee's peak net worth is estimated at about $100 million, with the bulk coming from the sale of his stake in the antivirus company he founded. McAfee sold off his final stake in the company in 1994.
Eglinton strongly refuted prior reports claiming that McAfee lost his fortune on bad stock picks during the Great Recession. 'We got a lot into where he spent his money over the years,' he said.
Eglinton is the author of an upcoming book about McAfee, titled No Domain
'He had his money in very safe investments, but he built houses, absolutely bizarre properties,' the Scottish author said. 'Some of them, he never slept a night in the property.'
McAfee owned, at various points, large mansions and compounds in
