Kriti Mehrotra
As a documentary that delves deep into the layers of once-renowned tech pioneer John McAfee’s years as a fugitive, ‘Running with the Devil: The Wild World of John McAfee’ is simply gripping. That’s because this Netflix original explores not only his substance use but also his strange behaviors, lies, as well as manipulations to really shine a light upon the complexity of his individuality. Yet, for now, if you just wish to learn more about the incident that essentially led to the beginning of this entire journey — the murder of Gregory Faull — we’ve got the necessary details for you.
How Did Gregory “Greg” Faull Die?
Gregory “Greg” Viant Faull was a loving father, son, and brother when he suddenly lost his life in his San Pedro town holiday home on the Belizian island of Ambergris Caye at the age of 52. The West Virginia native turned Florida resident had actually built a good life for himself by this point as a Navy veteran, construction entrepreneur, and restaurateur, only for things to soon change. He could’ve never even imagined that his gradual transition to Belize to pursue his passion for new adventures as well as beautiful waters would lead to his untimely demise in November 2012.
It was November 11 when Greg’s local housekeeper found him lying in a pool of blood on the second story of his lavish east coast Central American home and immediately called the authorities. It subsequently came to light he’d been shot once in the back of his head with a 9mm firearm, had multiple Taser marks all over his body, and had a foreign fingernail embedded into his scalp. The proud American’s official autopsy (conducted on November 13) further confirmed his exact cause of death to be “brain damage due to injuries sustained from a gunshot wound to the head.”
Who Killed Gregory “Greg” Faull?
Since there were no signs of a forced entry or a break-in despite the fact both Greg’s laptop and his cell phone were missing, the officials quickly dismissed the theory of a robbery gone wrong. They also soon learned there had been an ongoing bitter dispute between him and neighbor John McAfee, leading them to approach the latter’s residence a mere 200 yards away for questioning. However, the computer programmer/businessman was nowhere to be found — he admittedly intentionally hid from them before fleeing the country altogether rather than candidly cooperating.
According to court records, Greg had seriously begun having an issue with John’s “violent dogs” upon witnessing them attack a young tourist, sparking the flow of threats amongst the duo. From the latter declaring he’d kill his neighbor if he ever stepped foot on his property to the former indicating he’d poison the dogs to it actually happening, everything transpired within weeks. John’s dogs were poisoned around November 8 or 9, 2012 — he claimed he had to shoot four of them to put them out of their misery — and Greg was found dead a few days later, on the 12th.
John always maintained his innocence in connection to the actual murder by reportedly stating he fled in fear of his life because the Belize authorities wanted him dead but killed Greg instead. He even unsuccessfully sought political asylum in Guatemala, just to be arrested for illegally entering the nation and then deported back to the US, where he seemingly wasn’t pursued legally. However, with signs the millionaire entrepreneur had hired a local to have the Floridian slain, Greg’s family filed a wrongful death lawsuit against him in the United States itself back in 2013.
Greg’s estate was eventually awarded more than $25 million — $20 million in damages, $5 million in compensation for emotional distress, and $8,400 in funeral costs — yet John never paid the same. The person of interest in Belize (not an official suspect) had actually denied accountability before his 2021 passing by stating, “I was never charged with murder by Belizean authorities or any other authority. It was a suit based entirely on media reporting.” Moreover, he said he couldn’t pay the ordered amount as he didn’t have any assets or funds under his name. What’s most important to note here, though, is that the case of Greg’s murder does officially remain unsolved.
