Computer software pioneer John McAfee poses with tourists
as he speaks with reporters outside his hotel in Miami
Beach, Florida. REUTERS/Joe Skipper
US software pioneer John McAfee said that he will not
return to Belize where police want to question him about a
murder case, but that he is willing to let authorities from the
Central American nation interview him in a "neutral country."
McAfee, 67, went into hiding after his American neighbour
Gregory Faull was fatally shot in November. He made his way
secretly to neighbouring Guatemala, but the authorities there
deported him to Miami on Wednesday.
"I will not go back to Belize. I had nothing to do with the
murder," a relaxed-looking McAfee said in an interview on
CNBC.
Police in Belize want to question McAfee as a "person of
interest" in Faull's killing, though authorities there say he
is not a prime suspect. McAfee said he barely knew Faull and
had "absolutely nothing" to do with his death.
Belize police say their country's extradition treaty with the
United States extends only to suspected criminals, a
designation that does not apply to McAfee.
McAfee, an eccentric tech pioneer, made a fortune from the
anti-virus software bearing his name and had lived in Belize
for four years.
He has charged that authorities have persecuted him because
he refused to pay $2 million in bribes, and that the
extortion attempt occurred after armed soldiers shot one of
his dogs, smashed up his property and falsely accused him of
running a methamphetamine laboratory.
Belize's prime minister has rejected the allegations, calling
McAfee paranoid and "bonkers."
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