McAfee Associates Inc continues to stalk Cheyenne Software Inc, but the dispute between the two yesterday turned nasty as McAfee said it would woo shareholders of the Roslyn Heights, New York company, seeking to persuade them to demand that their board appoint an independent committee to negotiate a possible merger. Cheyenne responded by suing McAfee and its chairman William Larson alleging securities fraud over the statements he has made about the contact between the two, and saying that no formal offer had been made. As we were going to press, McAfee president, CEO, and chairman, Bill Larson, had just deemed the lawsuit a frivolous nitpicking of public statements. We are convinced that our conduct and statements have been well within the bounds of the law, and that the lawsuit is a tactic designed to distract attention from McAfee’s acquisition proposal and our call for the formation of a special independent committee to examine our proposal.
