Gianinna Maradona accuses medical team of “total manipulation” in Diego Maradona’s death case

Gianinna Maradona, the late football legend Diego Maradona’s daughter, on Tuesday accused doctors involved in his care of “total manipulation” in the lead-up to his 2020 death.

Testifying at the trial of Maradona’s seven-person medical team, Gianinna said the defendants convinced her and her siblings that their father could safely recuperate at a rented home in the Tigre area, rather than in a medical facility.

She described the arrangement as a “serious” option and claimed the residence would be properly equipped medically.

“I trusted these three people, who only manipulated us and left my son without a grandfather,” Gianinna told the court, naming neurosurgeon Leopoldo Luque, psychiatrist Agustina Cosachov, and nurse Carlos Diaz.

The medical team members face prison terms of between eight and 25 years if convicted of homicide with possible intent. A central question in the proceedings is whether allowing Maradona to recuperate at home put his life in danger.

The defense argues Maradona, who battled cocaine and alcohol addictions, died of natural causes.

Prosecutors say he died after complications following surgery for a brain clot, with investigators citing heart failure and acute pulmonary edema, fluid accumulation in the lungs.

The first trial was annulled last year after revelations that one judge had taken part in a clandestine documentary about the case.

Source: AFP