Psychiatrist denies responsibility for Maradona’s death
Psychiatrist Agustina Cosachov, who treated Diego Maradona, denied any responsibility for the death of the Argentine ex-footballer on Friday. The psychiatrist is being prosecuted for manslaughter along with six other members of Maradona’s medical team.
The 36-year-old psychiatrist, a specialist in addictions, was questioned for more than six hours by the prosecutor in San Isidro, an upscale suburb north of Buenos Aires. The interrogation is part of an investigation into “manslaughter with aggravating circumstances” against the seven members of the ex-football player’s medical team.
Maradona, who suffered from kidney and liver problems, heart failure, a neurological disorder, and a drug and alcohol addiction, died of a heart attack on November 25, 2020, at the age of 60. A few weeks before, he had brain surgery to remove a blood clot.
“Left to its own devices”
The prosecution suspects the caregivers of not fully performing their medical duties, leading to a fatal outcome for the patient “that could have been avoided”. In early May, an expert report concluded that Maradona had been “left to his own devices” by his medical team due to their “inadequate, inadequate and reckless treatment leading to his death”.
“The doctor has provided evidence that no ‘murder’ was committed. There is no suspicion that the psychiatric drugs in the prescribed doses can cause heart failure,” said the psychiatrist’s lawyer. “The heart condition discovered at the autopsy did not translate into symptoms while the patient was alive, so he was not treated for it. When he left the hospital a few weeks before his death, his heart was still working.”
The hearings of the investigation will conclude on Monday with the summons of the neurosurgeon and personal physician of Maradona, 39-year-old Leopolde Luque. Earlier, two nurses, their superior, a home doctor, and a psychologist were also heard in the case. The seven ‘suspects’ may face a prison sentence of between 8 and 25 years if it turns out that they really did nothing when Maradona was dying.
