A NEW trial over the death of Argentine football icon Diego Maradona will begin after he died in a ‘house of horrors’ while allegedly being treated like an animal.
The fresh court probe comes nearly a year after a previous case collapsed into a mistrial where one of the judges was forced to resign following a TV appearance.
Seven members of the legend’s medical team were charged with negligent homicide after he tragically died from a heart attack at just 60 years old.
Maradona had been recovering from a brain surgery to remove a blood clot at the time of his death in 2020.
The defendants include psychiatrist Agustina Cosachov, neurosurgeon Leopoldo Luque, psychologist Carlos Angel Diaz, physician Nancy Edith Forlini, nurse Ricardo Almiron, head nurse Mariano Ariel Perroni, and physician Pedro Pablo Di Spagna.
On Tuesday, they will face a court on San Isidro, near Buenos Aires, where nearly 100 witnesses will give evidence over the death of the 1986 World Cup champion.
Football fan who carried Maradona on shoulders in iconic photo sadly dies
An eighth defendant – nurse Dahiana Madrid – will face court in a separate jury trial at a later date.
All eight co-accused have denied wrongdoing.
Last May, a mistrial was declared when it was revealed that judge Julieta Makintach had been interviewed by a camera crew two months into the case in the corridors of the courthouse and in her office.
The bombshell interviews had been part of a documentary.
Dubbed the “judge of God”, she featured in a trailer for the six-part mini-series which was embarrassingly played to the court.
Her involvement in the show was in breach of the judicial rules and she was forced to resign.
The five-month trial exposed chilling claims about the footballer’s death which included being treated like an animal by the medical team.
The retrial has required both sides of the tense legal battle to reassess their courtroom strategies as the first trial aired photographs, videos, audio recordings and forensic evidence.
Multiple witnesses, including Maradona’s children and his former wife, Claudia Villafane, have already given evidence to the court.
Previously, prosecutors argued that the medical team had broken treatment protocols, labelling the home where Maradona was recovering a “theatre of horror“.
They also alleged that necessary care had not been provided to the football great.
Autopsy expert Mauricio Cassinelli told a court the champion had “a heart that weighed more than twice its normal size.”
He died in a dark room lying in agony for half a day before suffering a heart attack.
The star experienced dilated cardiomyopathy, a disease of the heart muscle that caused his heart chambers to enlarge and stretch.
He also suffered from cirrhosis which damaged his liver, as well as myocarditis which occurs when the heart becomes inflamed.
Allegations include Maradona being allowed to drink beer in the morning and was later given sleeping pills dissolved in his booze at night, all while under the accused’s medical care.
It has also been alleged that he was washed down with a hosepipe rather than being helped to the shower.
Chief prosecutor Patricio Ferrari shocked the room, holding up a bleak picture of the player’s last day, which showed the Argentinian icon lying on his back with his bloated stomach exposed under a lifted-up black T-shirt.
“This is the way he died,” Ferrari told the court.
“In that House of Horror where Diego Maradona died no one did what they had to do,” Ferrari added.
But the defence hit back, saying his death had been inevitable due to his existing health issues.
Off the pitch, Maradona struggled for decades with cocaine and alcohol addiction, tarnishing his illustrious career.
The negligence charges were laid in 2021 when prosecutors appointed a medical board to investigate his death.
The panel of experts concluded that the star’s medical team acted in an “inappropriate, deficient and reckless” manner.
If convicted, the group of defendants could face between eight and 25 years behind bars.
The enduring presence in Argentina – still depicted in towering murals to tattoos – was found dead in a rented home in Tigre, painting a tragic picture of the star’s fall from grace in his grim final days.
Maradona – born in 1960 – was widely regarded as one of the greatest players of all time.
He led Argentina to World Cup glory in 1986, famously scoring the “Hand of God” goal and the “Goal of the Century” against England.
His incredible dribbling, vision, and flair made him a global icon, inspiring generations of footballers, including Lionel Messi.
