Medical Staff Who Attended Football Star Diego Maradona to Be Tried for Homicide in Argentina

Maradona died aged 60 on November 25, 2020, after suffering a cardiac arrest. Prior to his death, he had emergency brain surgery to address a subdural hematoma and was under medical supervision as an outpatient.

Following a probe into the great football star's death, a decision was made on Wednesday that eight medical personnel who took care of Diego Maradona would stand trial in Argentina for murder, Reuters reported.

The judge overseeing the case questioned "the behaviors - active or by omission - of each of the accused which led to and contributed to the realization of the harmful result" in the court document, cited in the report.

The court ruling reportedly stated that eight medical professionals who took care of Maradona at the time of his death, including nurses, doctors, and a psychologist, are charged with "simple homicide," a serious crime that entails intentionally ending someone's life.

In 2021, a medical panel charged with looking into Maradona's death came to the conclusion that the soccer star's medical staff had handled matters in an "inappropriate, deficient and reckless manner," although Maradona battled drug and alcohol addiction for years.

The World Cup champion was "in a situation of helplessness" at the time of his death, said an attorney representing one of Maradona's sons, according to the report.

"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," he is quoted as saying.

Shortly after Maradona died at a home outside of Buenos Aires, Argentine authorities started an inquiry, conducting inspections of his personal doctor's homes and questioning others engaged in his care.

Leopoldo Luque, Maradona's neurosurgeon and personal physician, psychologist Carlos Diaz, psychiatrist Agustina Cosachov, nurses Gisella Madrid and Ricardo Almiron, their supervisor Mariano Perroni, and physicians Nancy Forlini and Pedro Di Spagna were the defendants listed in the judgment, per the report.

The accused have refuted claims that they caused Maradona's death. The judge reportedly revealed that several of their attorneys had asked for the case to be dismissed.

According to Argentina's penal law, "simple homicide" carries a punishment that can range from eight to 25 years imprisonment. A start date for the trial has not yet been set.