Maradona trial paused over suspected medical evidence mix-up

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The latest trial over the death of Argentine football legend Diego Maradona was suspended Thursday following claims that kidney tests presented to the court belonged to the player’s father.

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Seven health care workers are accused of criminal negligence over the care Maradona received before his death at age 60 in November 2020, while he was recuperating from surgery.

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The first trial was dramatically annulled last year after two-and-a-half months of hearings, following revelations that one of the judges took part in a clandestine documentary about the case.

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A new trial began in April.

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It had been drawing near a close when it too became embroiled in controversy.

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The defense claims that kidney tests produced at the trial belonged to Maradona’s father, also called Diego, who died in 2015, not the star of the 1986 World Cup.

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The court adjourned the hearings until August 27 to allow for a review of the evidence.

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Maradona died of heart failure and acute pulmonary edema — a condition where fluid accumulates in the lungs — at a rented home in the Buenos Aires suburb of Tigre two weeks after undergoing surgery for a brain clot.

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His medical team is accused of providing inadequate care in the lead-up to his death, which it denies.

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On Tuesday, a nephrologist told the court that the condition of the player’s kidneys should have been a red flag for his doctors.

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He said the larger-than-life footballer, who had a history of cocaine abuse, should have undergone “daily medical checkups, daily nursing care, blood tests and monitoring of his vital signs.”

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The prosecution assured that the alleged text mix-up in no way jeopardised their case.

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“They (the defense) will not succeed in bringing down the trial,” prosecutor Patricio Ferrari said Thursday.

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A lawyer for one of the accused, nurse Nancy Forlini, denied any plans to seek a mistrial.

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“I want this case to end so that my client knows her judicial fate,” he said.

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If confirmed that the kidney test results were those of Maradona’s father, it could discredit the medical commission set up to evaluate the circumstances of Maradona’s death.

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The nephrologist who testified Tuesday is part of the commission, which has been highly critical of the care the star received.

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AFP

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