Images of dead Diego Maradona rock trial of medical team

SAN ISIDRO, Argentina – Shock images of Argentine football icon Diego Maradona lying dead in bed, his stomach grotesquely swollen, rocked the negligence trial of his medical team on April 23 .

Maradona, regarded as one of the greatest football players of all time , died in November 2020 at age 60, while recovering at home from surgery for a brain clot.

The larger-than-life footballer died of heart failure and acute pulmonary edema – a condition where fluid accumulates in the lungs – two weeks after going under the knife.

The emergency room doctor, Mr Juan Carlos Pinto, who arrived by ambulance at his home, on April 23 testified about the condition in which he found the star after his death.

“He had a lot of edema, his face was very swollen, there was edema on his limbs, and a globular abdomen, like a balloon.”

The court was shown a 17-minute video shot by forensic police of Maradona on his deathbed, wearing a pair of football shorts and a black t-shirt pulled up to reveal a cavernous stomach.

Mr Pinto said the swelling was caused by a large quantity of both fat and ascites, an abnormal build-up of fluid in the abdominal cavity often linked to cirrhosis of the liver.

Maradona’s daughter Gianinna, who was in court for the hearing, wept as Mr Pinto spoke and buried her head in her hands as the video was shown.

Seven medical workers, including a neurosurgeon, a psychiatrist and a nurse, face prison terms of between eight and 25 years if convicted of homicide with possible intent – pursuing a course of action despite knowing it could lead to death – over the conditions of Maradona’s care in his final days.

Both Mr Pinto and a police officer testified about the lack of medical equipment in the rented residence where Maradona was recuperating.

“There was no defibrillator, no oxygen, nothing. In the room, there was nothing to suggest that the patient was in hospital at home,” Mr Pinto said.

The accused deny responsibility for Maradona’s death, saying the star of the 1986 World Cup, who battled cocaine and alcohol addictions, succumbed to natural causes.

The first trial over his death was annulled in 2025 following revelations that one of the judges took part in a clandestine documentary about the case.

A second trial, conducted by a new panel of judges, began last week.

It is expected to last at least three months. AFP

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