Maradona doctor was made ‘scapegoat’ for his death, Argentinian court told
Defence lawyers told an Argentinian court that Diego Maradona's doctor Leopoldo Luque is being made a 'scapegoat', as prosecutors seek a 12-year prison sentence over the football legend's 2020 death.
Diego Maradona's doctor has been turned into a scapegoat over the football legend's death, an Argentinian court heard on Wednesday, as the defence opened its closing arguments in the long-running negligence trial.
Prosecutors are seeking a 12-year prison sentence for Leopoldo Luque, the neurosurgeon who treated Maradona before his death in November 2020. Luque is one of seven healthcare professionals who have been on trial since April over possible negligence during the star's two weeks of convalescence.
One of Luque's lawyers told the court there had been 'absolutely no possibility of predicting this fatal outcome', rejecting the prosecution's claim that the death was foreseeable and preventable. The defence argued that Luque was being blamed simply because he had the closest contact with the player.
Prosecutors have requested sentences ranging from four to 12 years for six of the seven defendants. In their closing arguments they condemned Luque's 'inaction', saying his attitude contributed to the tragedy. The defence attacked the conclusions of an interdisciplinary medical commission that based its findings on the autopsy, insisting Maradona had no heart problems in 2020.
Throughout the trial, Luque was the most combative of the defendants, repeatedly speaking in his own defence. 'It's easy to attack me because I'm the one who had the most contact with Maradona,' he told the court. 'I cared deeply for him, I loved him, he was my idol and my friend.'
Maradona died at the age of 60 from a cardiorespiratory crisis combined with pulmonary oedema. His death plunged Argentina into mourning in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic, with tens of thousands of people defying social distancing rules to file past his coffin as he lay in state.
Defence lawyer Nicolas D'Albora, who represents medical coordinator Nancy Forlini, also blamed Maradona's own conduct. Forlini faces a possible 10-year sentence for homicide with intent over an alleged failure to provide basic medical care.
The defence closing arguments are expected to continue until Thursday.
Source: Al Jazeera English — TrendWire reports stories in its own words; facts should be confirmed against the original source.