The commiseration over the death of Argentine soccer great Diego Maradona has been matched by serious questions over the circumstances that led to his passing. And now, seven medical professionals are being charged as culpable for the death of one of the greatest players in soccer history.
According to a report by Adriana Garcia of ESPN, the San Isidro, Argentina prosecutors’ office has charged seven medical professionals with “simple homicide with eventual intent” in the death of Diego Maradona, who died of heart failure last November, two weeks after undergoing brain surgery.
The medical professionals who were responsible for Maradona’s care have been accused of not looking after him properly, with a medical board appointed by the prosecutors’ office claiming that Maradona’s medical team acted in an “inappropriate, deficient and reckless manner” prior to his death.
The medical board’s report stated that Maradona presented “unequivocal signs of a prolonged agonizing period,” with claims that Maradona became seriously unwell and was dying for approximately 12 hours before his eventual passing on Nov. 25.
Among the defendants include Leopoldo Luque, the neurosurgeon who performed Maradona’s brain surgery, Maradona’s psychiatrist Agustina Cosachov, two nurses, a nurse coordinator, a doctor, and a psychologist. Luque denied any wrongdoing.
Since Maradona’s death, there has been outrage directed toward the medical professionals that treated Maradona. A march several months ago in Buenos Aires demanded justice for Maradona, with protesters holding up signs with statements such as “No se murió, lo mataron” (“He didn’t die, they killed him.”)
Known as El Pibe de Oro (“The Golden Boy”), Maradona was a hero both in his native Argentina and internationally, and he served as the captain of an Argentina team that won the 1986 World Cup. Maradona went into coaching later in his life and was serving as the manager of Gimnasia de La Plata in the Argentine Primera División at the time of his death.
