Diego Maradona: Medical team who cared for footballer charged with criminal negligence

Members of Diego Maradona’s care team will stand trial under charges relating to the death of the former football star.

The eight people, including doctors, nurses, and a psychologist, who cared for the Argentinian footballer at the time of his death in November 2020, are accused of failing to take proper care of the Argentinian star.

The 60-year-old underwent surgery for a blood clot on his brain a few weeks prior to his death, but later died due to a cardiac arrest at his home outside Buenos Aires.

Prosecutors have now claimed he died as a result of “omissions” of the care he received from his team and have charged them with “simple homicide” - taking a life with intent.

In a document, seen by Reuters, the judge questioned “the behaviours - active or by omission - of each of the accused which led to and contributed to the realisation of the harmful result".

The defendants are Maradona’s neurosurgeon and personal doctor, Leopoldo Luque, psychiatrist Agustina Cosachov, psychologist Carlos Diaz, nurses Gisella Madrid, and Ricardo Almiron, their boss Mariano Perroni, and doctors Pedro Di Spagna and Nancy Forlin.

In 2021, a medical team appointed to investigate Maradona’s death, said the former footballer’s medical team had acted in an "inappropriate, deficient and reckless manner".

All eight have denied the charges, while an attorney representing one of the defendants, said their care had no relation to Maradona’s death

Mario Baudry, a lawyer for one of Maradona's sons, however, said that he had been in a state of “helplessness” when he died. The trial is not expected to begin until the end of 2023 or early 2024.

Maradona had also undergone surgery in 2005 where he had a gastric bypass operation and was treated for 2007 for life-threatening alcohol-induced hepatitis.