Maradona Death Retrial Starts for Medical Team

A new trial into the death of Argentine football legend Diego Maradona began on Tuesday in San Isidro, near Buenos Aires, as seven members of his medical team face charges of homicide with eventual intent over the circumstances surrounding his passing more than five years ago.

Maradona died on November 25, 2020, at the age of 60 from cardiac arrest and acute pulmonary edema, a condition involving fluid buildup in the lungs. He was recovering at a rented home in the northern Buenos Aires suburb of Tigre following surgery earlier that month to remove a brain blood clot. Prosecutors allege that the medical team provided inadequate and reckless care, aware of the risks to his health but failing to intervene properly. A panel of medical experts appointed in 2021 concluded that the home-based treatment was deficient, lacking essential equipment such as defibrillators, and that Maradona would have had a better chance of survival in a proper medical facility. Evidence includes text messages among team members indicating they anticipated his deterioration without action, and reports that he suffered for over 12 hours before the fatal heart attack.

The defendants, who have denied the...