Business in central america. Is there a specific point went he goes off the rails . Of course, hes the main suspect. Did you order a hit on him . Of course not. Please. Nine of your dogs were poisoned, and the one who ordered it is dead. We tracked him from belize to guatemala, miami to middle america. Why go on the run . Because if i didnt, id be a dead man. Tonight, hes ready to talk. About his rise, fall, and new rise. Only to 20 20. Are you losing your mind . Are you . And the fireworks are just getting started. Goodbye. Youre walking out on the interview. Yes. Damn word. Good evening. Im elizabeth vargas. And im david muir. He calls himself the god of computer security, and now john mcafee is answering hard questions tonight about what happened after he made millions. Hes front and center at a time when everybody is focused on computer hacking. But what happened on the mysterious off the radar years, when he was suspected of taking a life . Matt gutman has been following him for four years to find out. Reporter there are so many layers to the epic, disturbing story of john mcafee. Maybe because there are so many john mcafees. John mcafee is one of the wildest characters youll ever come across. Reporter theres mcafee the party animal. John . Huh . Reporter mcafee the Silicon Valley gazillionare. It is the number one computer threat. Reporte hes someone that i feel is dangerous. Reporter even mcafee the president ial candidate. Stand with me to protect our freedom. Reporter pinning down the truth of mcafees life story is never easy because often it is as slippery as he is. He is like teflon, nothing sticks to the man. Reporter if the name mcafee rings a bell, it should. Theres a good chance its on your home computer screen right now. Yup, hes the guy behind the famous mcafee antivirus software. When we say we are going to talk tomorrow, does that mean face to face . I first crossed paths with mcafee in 2012, when hed become even more famous south of the border. He was on the run, and would only talk to me by phone. You may not think you are being followed but i can assure you, you are. Reporter hello . Anybody home . But i wasnt chasing him around latin america because of a cyber crime. This was a real life homicide, allegations that he murdered fellow american greg faull. We begin with that software of murder. Reporter Police Wanted to question mcafee about the murder, but he didnt want to answer. He dodged authorities all the way back to the u. S. Where he has been ever since, never charged with a crime. The pandoras box has been opened. Reporter but what makes this story even stranger is john mcafees latest incarnation. Our computers are no longer back home in the office, they are in our hands. Reporter these days hes reemerged as a prophet of digital doom and his apocalyptic warnings about todays Cyber Threats attract plenty of eyeballs both in person, and on tv. Were being spied on by our government. Reporter even with all that attention, what he hasnt done since returning home is a no holds barred interview on every aspect of his past. But now, after more than four years, im about to get my chance. I admit, ive heard so many things about him. Hes erratic, hes a hightech prince of darkness, hes just plain dangerous, that im nervous. Ive been warned about john mcafee. So im keeping my second cell phone and my credit cards here at the hotel so they dont get hacked. I drive on to our meeting place, a parking lot in rural tennessee, where mcafee greets me like a southern gentleman. How you doing, sir . Good to see you. Reporter how are you . We talk a bit and head off in his tanklike truck. If i have to put up with people like you then im going to have fun doing it. Reporter to him, reporters are just like a ball of twine to a cat, something to play with until he gets bored. We arrive at a quiet suburban downtown for a casual lunch at this mexican restaurant. You like mexican food . Reporter yeah, i like mexican food. Sure. You said you grew up in town like this in virginia, right . Between bites of chips and salsa, and beers for mcafee, we talked about his troubled childhood. One of things that was not idyllic there was your father. Youve said that he was a raging alcoholic and that he was abusive to you and to your mother. Even children. Hedyed when you were 15 . 15. Reporter he shot himself . Yeah. People always look to the past to explain the present. It doesnt work that way. Reporter the present for mcafee this upscale but hardly lavish spread. He shares it with his new wife janis, his everpresent bodyguard, and his dogs. As we sit down inside, fortified by a glass of expensive scotch, mcafee continues with his life story, saying that despite being a lazy kid, he always got straight as. Math came easy to me. Ive never studied. I just did what i felt i should do. Reporter in college, mcafee says he began peddling a product he knew he could sell, cocaine. Its interesting that drug dealing was really your first foray into entrepreneurship . Yeah. Its everything, its salesmanship. Reporter then came the dawn of the gogo 80s. Big hair, even bigger shoulder pads, pac man fever. As the home computer revolution kicked in, mcafee, now working as a programmer, was among the first to identify its perils and a potential profit. A computer virus is a programmer written by a hacker with a unique purpose, and that purpose is to multiply and to live. I was figuring out, oh yeah, i can stop this here, i could stop this here, i can actually remove this thing. And wrote a program in a day and a half. Reporter so mcafee antivirus was created in a day and a half . Yes. Reporter and how well did it work . 4 Million People were using it within a month. Five years later over half the fortune 500 companies in the country had begun using it. Thats how important it became to their business and to keeping their computers safe. Reporter in no time, the software bad boy amassed a large fortune. But as mcafee admits he gets bored easily, so after a few years he cashed out. You made 100 million, lets say, for selling mcafee, right . Thats what they say. Reporter how much did you make . Much more. Reporter what did you do with the money . I wasted it, like everybody who has money. Reporter he built nine homes, filled them with expensive art and furniture, bought a fleet of antique cars. Is that love . Isnt it selfishness . Isnt it all about you . Reporter his next chapter, creating a yoga retreat in colorado, reinventing himself as a new age guru bestowing his eternal wisdom on his guests. Its all about need and jealousy is all about the fear of losing all of these things which you have attained. Reporter but mcafee says his zen was disturbed by a constant wave of what he calls frivolous lawsuits. Tonight on nightline, losing a fortune. Reporter so after th financial crash, in 2009 mcafee let it be known he had lost most of his money. How to kiss nearly 100 Million Dollars goodbye. Sometimes a little bit of pain is necessary to see and understand the true circumstances of your life. Reporter nightline covered this auction on mcafees ranch where everything, including his beloved airplanes, winnebagos, exotic art collection, even the gold elephant and dinosaur skull went on the block. Starting off at 1 million. Reporter mcafee now claims he it was all a charade, a ruse. He was just trying to look broke so people would stop suing him. No, i didnt lose my fortune. Im not that stupid. Reporter whatever the case, one part of that report is indisputable. Now mcafee plans to take his remaining handful of millions and head to central america. Reporter next stop, belize. He figured no one would sue him there, but he pr imagined his time there would make him an international fugitive. Stay with us. Le word. This mothers day create a gift from the heart that could only come from the pandora boutique at jared. A world of pandora. Including exclusive pieces designed just for jared. Ready to be mixed, matched and stacked with help from jareds own pandora expert. The one gift that speaks volumes, youll both treasure forever. Thats why he went to jared. Go to Great Lengths frto find relief. Ain nally theredrugfree eve direct therapy® a tens device with high intensity power that uses technology once only available in doctors offices for deep penetrating relief at the source. Aleve direct therapy. Whats the best way to get v8 or a fancy juice store . S . Ready, go hi, juice universe . Done thats not fair. Glad i had a v8. The original way to fuel your day. A 10speed directshift 5. 0transmission. Ine. A meticulously crafted interior. All of these are feats of engineering. Combining them with nearperfect weight distribution. Is a feat of amazing. Experience the firstever 471horsepower lexus lc 500 experience amazing. Mcafee, the scotch is brought in by the case. And champagne is waiting as usual. Reporter champagne is on ice. Excuse me for smoking, people. But its one of my vices. Reporter cigarettes are always ablaze. And the guns are always loaded. This is at 1,300 feet per second. This is 800 feet per second. Reporter so which would hurt more . Oh, this, absolutely. Reporter but im not here for a party or target practice. Im here to talk to him about how his life took a very dark turn during his Central American interlude. Why did you go to belize in the first place . Because im a stupid man. Reporter easy to joke now, in his pleasant suburban kitchen. But back in 2009, before everything went so horribly wrong, belize seemed a brilliant idea for john mcafee, who was eager to escape the cascade of lawsuits back in the u. S. Most beautiful beach in the world, a reef a quarter of a mile offshore. I snorkel, i fish, i swim. I love the water. It was beautiful. Reporter the quintessential millionaires dream. He purchased a spread on an island called ambergris caye, surrounded by american expats. But mcafees most intriguing fantasy wasnt on the beach at all. Get ready for some serious heart of darkness here. Reporter as seen on this cnbc report, he purchased a Second Property in the interior of the country and moved deep in the jungle to a place called orange walk, where he had set up a lab. I thought, wow, this is a dream come true. Reporter Allison Adonizio was a harvardtrained microbiologist he brought into the jungle. The famed entrepreneur was at it again with his latest startup venture, creating plantbased antibiotics. But she says the enterprise fell apart when her benefactor started to come unhinged. He beca was talking about taking over the country. I started to think, this guy is a madman. Reporter mcafee says he was helping the locals, feeding poor families and providing many with jobs. I employed half of the town. I can show you a letter from the mayor, saying that mr. Mcafees done more for orange walk than any of our citizens have. Reporter but exactly what was he doing for those citizens . Mcafee admits he brought in young women to be in his harem. Then there was the gang of convicted criminals mcafee proudly says he hired as his armed bodyguards, his own private militia. Everybody i hired was an exfelon and had spent half of their life in prison. Reporter that sounds like a recipe for disaster. They never shot anybody. Never even pointed a gun at anybody because they were dangerous people. He called them hit men. He told me repeatedly that he could have people hu reporter adonizio says it all became too much for her. But listen to her traumatic account of what she says happened when she told mcafee she wanted out. When i did go over there, the conversation did not go as i expected. And oh, god, i feel so stupid. Reporter she wasnt able to go on. Im sorry, i just reporter the one time she was able to describe publicly what she says happened was in a documentary film about mcafee called gringo. I told him i had a headache and he went into the other room and he brought me two pills and it tasted foul. Reporter she says he drugged her with that juice and then raped her. I only have sort of flashes of recollection, he was standing over me naked. I grabbed my clothes, i dont even remember taking them off. Reporter adonizio says she quickly fled belize without telling the local police. She says u. S. Authorities told her they had no jurisdiction, so no charges were pursued. I dont know what to tell you except that i have emotional and physical scars from that experience. Allison adonizio, a madwoman. Reporter a madwoman. A madwoman. Reporter well, she claims that you raped her. Well, she can claim whatever she likes. Never had sex with her, certainly never raped her. She seemed rational. She was not. I find it rather ironic that so i think that im pretty strong, considering everything that ive had to go through. Reporter then, in april of 2012, mcafee was about to have trouble with the law for an entirely different reason. There was a belief he was manufacturing illicit drugs in the compound because of all the different criminal elements that were there. Its very unusual that you would be doing research into plants and you need so many people to protect you. Reporter belizes gang suppression unit raided his lab, they say on suspicion he was making meth. No drugs were found. Police reporter mcafee claims the government was harassing him because he wouldnt pay bribes. I was on the verge of something. When i refused to pay an extortion for 2 million. And a week later the gang suppression unit destroyed my lab. Reporter mcafee abandoned the jungle, and moved back to ambergris caye. But trouble followed. Among his neighbors was this man, greg faull, a builder who came from Central Florida to central america. This is the house in belize. Took him about seven years to build it. Reporter gregs mother Eileen Keeney says her son wanted a peaceful retirement in the caribbean but when she came to visit him a few months later, she says it was anything but peaceful. Greg was not happy with him, and he had had some issues with mcafee. Reporter keeney says greg was disgusted by what mcafee had brought back from the jungle. That harem of women, the armed guards, and especially the swarm of dogs that constantly menaced passersby. He said, now, were going to be walking past mcafees house and theres going to be dogs there. Now, theyre usually fenced up, but he says i just want to warn home to florida, she had no clue what was ahead. Two days later, she received an unfathomable phone call from her daughter. And then she told me gregs been murdered, and i let out this bloodcurdling scream. Reporter a brutal beachside murder. Was the eccentric millionaire involved . I have a couple more questions. Coming up, when we press him, we discover that is a touchy subject. Nothing happened. Goodbye. Reporter youre walking out on this interview . [ bleep ] yes, because you have not kept your [ bleep ] damn word. Reporter stay with us. My doctor said moving more helps ease fibromyalgia pain. She also prescribed lyrica. Fibromyalgia is thought to be the result of overactive nerves. Lyrica is believed to calm these nerves. Woman for some, and improve function, so i feel better. Lyrica may cause serious allergic reactions or suicidal thoughts or actions. Tell your doctor right away if you have these, new or worsening depression, or unusual changes in mood or behavior. Or swelling, trouble breathing, rash, hives, blisters, muscle pain with fever, tired feeling, or blurry vision. Common side effects are dizziness, sleepiness, weight gain and swelling of hands, legs and feet. Dont drink alcohol while taking lyrica. Dont drive or use machinery until you know how lyrica affects you. Those who have had a drug or alcohol problem may be more likely to misuse lyrica. With less pain, i can be more active. Ask your doctor about lyrica. I can be more active. Right now, at mcdonalds, get any small mccafe frappe, smoothie, or shake for just 2. 2 . I mean how do you top a delicious, delectable, gottohaveitnow al like that . Oh yes. Of course. Thats how. And to top that off, every sixth mccafe only at mcdonalds. flourish spray noise flourish spray noise flourish spray noise flourish spray noise the joy of real cream in 15 calories per serving. Enough said. Reddiwip. flourish spray noise share the joy. Get 25 off nike for mom. Thats 25 off select nike shoes, apparel and accessories just in time for mothers day and, everyone gets kohls cash earn it on everything spend it on anything right now at kohls. And let roomba from irobot help with your everyday messes. Roomba navigates your entire home. Cleaning up pet hair and debris for up to 2 hours. Which means your floors are always clean. You and roomba, from irobot. Better. Together. Dude. Your crunchings scaring the fish. Dude. Theyre just jealous. New kelloggs raisin bran crunch with crunchy clusters and the taste of apples and strawberries. excited i got one jokingly guess were having cereal for dinner. New kelloggs raisin bran crunch apple strawberry try aveeno® sheer hydration. Its active naturals® oat formula. Goes on feather light. Absorbs in seconds. Keeps skin healthy looking and soft. Aveeno® naturally beautiful results. The kind we celebraten a on mothers day. Love. Right now save 3050 off everything. For the gift that will last for generations. Zales. The diamond store. Reporter november, 2012. Trouble is brewing in belize. American greg faull has had it with his neighbor john mcafees pack of aggressive dogs, and he told friends he was going to take care of the problem. Greg had told him he was going to poison the dogs. Reporter then, one evening, some poisoned meat is thrown over mcafees fence. All nine of his dogs are poisoned. Gregory faull complained about mcafees dogs, and shortly afterwards the dogs are poisoned reporter the very next night, an intruder sneaks into faulls home, tasers him several times, and then shoots him in the head. No one had confronted mcafee and faull did. Theres a linkage there. Reporter the house showed no sign of forced entry. Nothing was taken from inside. He was brutally murdered and he had no enemies. Reporter but belizean journalist jose sanchez says his country is notorious as a place where just about anyone can get away with murder. Unless there is an eyewitness to a crime, murder is rarely solved in belize. And that is the reason why there is a 3 average conviction rate. Reporter still, Belize Police quickly name mcafee as a person of interest in faulls murder. And because of that famous name, seen on millions of computers worldwide, the story makes international headlines. Belize. Mcafee has been marked. Reporter police want to talk to mcafee, but the feelings not mutual. Even as news of the murder breaks. Mcafee goes on the lam. Of course hes the main suspect here. Youve got motive, youve got the incident with the dogs. Youve got their history. Why would you go to the effort of hiding if you didnt if you werent guilty . Reporter why did you go on the run . Because if i didnt go on the run id be a dead man now. Reporter mcafee claims that after he refused to pay bribes, the belize government was out to get him, and the poisoning of his dogs and the murder of faull was somehow just part of that sinister plot. If you thin