Guatemalan judge grants stay of McAfee deportation

PanARMENIAN.Net - A judge in Guatemala has granted a stay of the deportation of John McAfee to Belize, where authorities want to question him about the killing of a neighbor, an attorney for the internet software pioneer said Friday, Dec 7, according to CNN.

Under the order, McAfee will remain in Guatemala until his immigration case is heard in court, which may be more than a month, Telesforo Guerra said.

McAfee remains in an immigration detention center in Guatemala City but could be released as early as next week, the lawyer said.

Authorities in Belize want to talk to him about the November 11 killing of his neighbor, American businessman Gregory Faull.

The judicial victory came a day after McAfee's bid for asylum was rejected. Also Thursday, the 67-year-old was taken to a police hospital, where he was treated for cardiovascular problems, his legal team said.

Later, attorney Guerra said McAfee had suffered a nervous breakdown and that tests had shown he did not have heart problems.

McAfee was feeling better, Guerra said.

Standing outside the police hospital, attorney Karla Paz said officials had rejected McAfee's petition without weighing the evidence.

"Due process has been violated," she said. "The right to defense has not been respected."

Guatemalan authorities took McAfee into custody Wednesday on accusations of entering the country illegally.

After weeks in hiding, the anti-virus software company founder had emerged publicly Tuesday in Guatemala's capital, hundreds of miles from the Caribbean island in Belize where the body of his neighbor was found.

McAfee had sought asylum in Guatemala, arguing that he left Belize to escape police persecution. But Guatemalan authorities found there was no basis for his asylum request