November 30 – Argentine prosecutors are investigating Diego Maradona’s personal physician for possible negligence following the footballing legend’s death last week from a heart attack at the age of 60 which sparked a global outpouring of grief.
Leopoldo Luque has denied any responsibility after police raided his home and surgery on Sunday, seizing laptops, medical records and mobile devices.
Argentinian media reported that police were trying to establish if there was negligence in Maradona’s treatment. Weeks before his death, Maradona was admitted to hospital with signs of depression and later had a blood clot removed from his brain.
His death triggered claims from Maradona’s lawyer, Matias Morla, that emergency services had taken too long to arrive after being called to his home in the capital Buenos Aires. Morla has already said he would be seeking a full investigation into the circumstances, criticising what he said was a slow response by emergency services.
“The ambulance took more than half an hour to arrive, which was a criminal idiocy,” he wrote in a Twitter post.
Maradona’s daughters have reportedly voiced concerns over the treatment their father was receiving at the time of his death.
The order to search Luque’s premises was approved by a judge but Luque told reporters he had in fact recommended Maradona stay in hospital after his surgery but that he “wasn’t responsible for everything” involving the icon’s medical care.
”If you ask me, I’m a neurosurgeon and my job ended. There is no medical negligence,” he said. “I feel terrible because my friend has died. I’m not one who is responsible for all this.”
“I know what I did with Diego and I know how I did it. I can explain it all. I’m absolutely certain I did the best that could have been done for Diego.”
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