Eight medical personnel who cared for Maradona will stand trial for criminal negligence over the footballer’s death aged 60
- Football icon’s death will prompt homicide trial, Argentine judge has ruled
- Surgeon and psychiatrist accused of failing to take proper care of Maradona
- Maradona died at 60 after a cardiac arrest while recovering from a blood clot
- His autopsy ruled natural causes – but his family pressured judiciary for new trial
An Argentinian judge has ruled that eight medical personnel involved in the care of soccer star Diego Maradona will face a public trial for criminal negligence.
Brain surgeon Leopoldo Luque and psychiatrist Agustina Cosachov are among those who will stand trial for homicide, the judge ruled.
The trial is not expected to begin until the end of 2023 or early 2024.
The defendants are accused of failing to take proper care of Maradona when he was recovering from surgery, which led to his death.
Maradona died at the age of 60 on November 25 2020 due to a cardio-respiratory arrest while he was recovering at a house outside Buenos Aires from surgery for a blood clot on his brain.
Prosecutors requested in April that Judge Orlando Diaz put those under investigation on public trial.
Maradona’s autopsy said he died of natural causes, but Argentina’s judiciary started investigating the case after pressure from ex-footballer’s family.
A medical panel said the performance of the staff that took care of the 1986 World Cup winner was inadequate.
The doctors’ charges can result in up to 25 years’ imprisonment.
They have all denied wrongdoing.
A lawyer for one of the national hero’s sons told Reuters that Maradona was ‘in a situation of helplessness at the time of his death.
Mario Baudry said: ‘As soon as I saw the cause, I said it was homicide. I fought for a long time and here we are, with this stage completed.’
Source: Read Full Article
