Photo Source, Reuters
John McAfee, a businessman who developed McAfee antivirus software, was charged with money laundering and fraud in the United States.
McAfee and his bodyguard Jimmy Gale Watson Jr. are accused of trying to inflate cryptocurrency prices using McAfee’s massive Twitter influence. After attempting to manipulate prices with Twitter, the prosecution said it was estimated to have earned about $2 million in revenue from selling cryptocurrencies.
McAfee has not yet announced its official position on the allegations.
McAfee, 75, is currently detained in Spain on charges of tax evasion. He denies all charges, but he may be repatriated to the United States.
His bodyguard Watson was arrested in Texas last Thursday.
Prosecutor Arnold Spencer said, “Jimmy Watson is a former naval veteran. He fought for the freedoms and rights of others, and he deserves to exercise his rights in court.”
The case is handled by the Manhattan Court in New York, USA. After purchasing cryptocurrency in advance, McAfee and his bodyguard promoted the stock on McAfee’s Twitter, which has more than 1 million followers.
McAfee and his bodyguard received $11 million from cryptocurrency startups. However, it did not notify other investors of this fact.
Who is McAfee?
McAfee, a controversial figure, launched an antivirus program in the 1980s and became an asset of tens of billions of won. Later, he sold the company to Intel, but he continued to develop security programs.
McAfee, from the UK, tried to run for the 2016 and 2020 presidential elections in the United States but failed.
He has expressed dissatisfaction with tax policy since before. He said that in 2019, the tax imposition policy was “illegal,” so it was not paid.