Diego Maradona’s Doctors and Caregivers to be Questioned over His Death

Late footballer Diego Maradona’s personal physician and six other caregivers have been charged with neglecting the footballer during his last days.

A board of experts looking into his death have found that Maradona received inadequate care in his last days and the medical team didn’t do enough to keep him alive. 

The investigation was initiated when two of Maradona’s children filed a complaint against neurosurgeon Leopoldo Luque. 

The people who are under the scanner are Maradona's psychiatrist Agustina Cosachov, 35, psychologist  Carlos Diaz, 29, nurses Ricardo Almiron, 37, and Dahiana Madrid, 36, nursing coordinator Mariano Perroni, 40, and medical coordinator Nancy Forlini, 52. 

All of them will be questioned individually and a judge would then decide whether the matter should go to trial. 

A panel of 20 medical experts convened by Argentina’s prosecutor stated that Maradona would’ve had a better chance of survival if he was provided with the right treatment. 

Experts said Maradona's treatment had “deficiencies and irregularities”, and that the medical team had left his survival "to fate.” The panel concluded that Maradona would have had a better “chance of survival” if he was treated in a medical facility. 

Defending himself  Dr Luque said, “I did my best. I offered Diego everything I could, some things he accepted, others not.” He also stated that Maradona was depressed in his final days and he was affected to a large extent due to the quarantine. 

If the accused are found guilty they could be placed behind bars for eight to twenty-five years. They are currently prohibited from leaving the country. 

Maradona died of heart failure in November 2020 after undergoing brain surgery for a blood clot. 

Besides his brilliant football performances, he led his country Argentina to victory in the 1986 World Cup.