Details have been revealed of how Diego Maradona suffered an agonising 12-hour death in a dark room, struggling to breathe after his heart swelled to double that of a regular size after years of coc@ine use
Seven medical professionals are on trial for culpable homicide after the 1986 Argentina World Cup winner died following a heart attack aged 60 in 2020. They deny the charges.
Forensic expert Carlos Mauricio Casinelli showed pictures of brain clots, a ‘sign of agony’, and claimed his heart weighed 503 grams – more than a football.
Four-and-a-half litres of fluid had accumulated in his organs due to an acute pulmonary edema brought on by his heart failure.
Argentinian newspaper Clarin carries the horrifying details which emerged in the trial, with Casinelli claiming that his torture would have been easy to spot for days.
‘The heart was completely covered in fat and blood clots, which indicate agony,’ he said. ‘This is a patient who had been collecting water over the days; that’s not acute.
‘This was something that was foreseeable. Any doctor examining a patient would find this.
‘The water he had in his abdomen, in both pleurae, and in his heart isn’t normal; it doesn’t form in a day or an hour. It’s been forming over several days; there’s no exact time. It could have been from the time he was expelled (from hospital) until he died.
‘This is likely to take at least 10 days, given the addition of cirrhosis and myocarditis.’
Maradona had been recovering at home from a surgery on a brain blood clot, which he had had earlier that November. Two weeks later, Argentina and the football world were plunged into mourning.
Casinelli added: ‘It was a dark, partitioned room, with a bed in the middle of the room and a portable toilet.
‘It didn’t seem like a suitable place for what we later learned was home hospitalisation.’ Forensic doctor Federico Corasaniti backed up the claim that Maradona suffered a gradual death.
He believes that Maradona’s condition was that bad that the pressure on his lungs would have been audible to other people.
‘From my experience with the generalized edema, the difficulty he must have had breathing and exchanging gases, and the sounds in his lungs that are audible just by bringing his face close,’ he said.
‘In my opinion as a doctor, it wasn’t a sudden event.’
Maradona’s family have alleged negligence, a cover-up, and derogatory comments from the medical team who oversaw his care – calling it a ‘mafia’.
He had struggled with drug addiction, obesity, and alcoholism for decades, and reportedly came close to death in 2000 and 2004.
But prosecutors suspect that – were it not for the negligence of his doctors – his death could have been avoided.
Seven of the eight medical professionals who have been charged in the case, including Maradona’s brain surgeon, psychiatrist and nurses, are now standing trial for culpable homicide, a crime which roughly equates to involuntary manslaughter.
They deny wrongdoing but could face up to 25 years in prison.
Dalma Maradona, the legend’s eldest daughter, shared a video containing audio she claims proves serious irregularities in her father’s care. And she revealed that her mother is in fear of the ‘mafia’ who ‘control everything’.
‘My mother is worried because she is afraid,’ she said on the Angel Responde show on Bondi Live.
‘Afraid of the mafia, of those who control everything, have money and power. But I don’t care. I know who I am up against, but I cannot remain silent. We need people to know the truth. My mother tells me all the time “shut up, don’t say anything, I’m scared,” but I can’t. I owe it to him.’
Dalma was previously reported to have alleged that a ‘mafia of assassins’ caused her father’s death. She claims there are recordings that exist that prove a lack of medical attention with conversations about cover-ups and professional negligence, Argentine outlet Diario Registrado report.
Maradona won the World Cup with Argentina in 1986, having knocked England out in the quarter final with the infamous ‘Hand of God’ goal and another – later voted ‘Goal of the Century.’
