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Evening Standard
Evening Standard
World
Harriet Brewis

Diego Maradona death probe launched as police raid doctor’s home

Police in Argentina have launched an investigation into Diego Maradona’s death.

Less than four days after the football legend suffered a fatal heart attack, officers raided the home and private clinic of one of his doctors.

They are working to establish whether the sporting great was treated with negligence prior to his death at the age of 60.

His daughters have reportedly demanded to know what medication their father was taking.

On Sunday, several officers were seen stationed outside the house of neurologist Dr Leopoldo Luque in Buenos Aires.

Afterwards, Dr Luque told reporters that he had given investigators all records of his treatment of the footballer, as well as computers, hard drives and mobile phones.

Growing tearful, he defended his treatment of the troubled star, who died on Wednesday.

“I know what I did. I know how I did it…. I am absolutely sure that I did the best for Diego, the best I could,” he said.

The doctor added that he was not Maradona’s chief physician, but part of a medical team.

The 60-year-old, one of the greatest footballers of all time, was buried on Thursday in a private ceremony attended by just two dozen people.

It followed a public vigil at the country’s presidential palace where tens of thousands of weeping fans lined up to file past his coffin.

Maradona died in a house outside the Argentinian capital where he had been recovering from a brain operation on November 3.

He had suffered from a long series of medical issues, some related to overindulgence in drugs and alcohol. He was reportedly near death in 2000 and 2004.

Dr Luque described the former sportsman as a difficult patient, revealing that he had kicked the doctor out out of his house several times.

“Diego did what he wanted,” Dr Luque said. “Diego needed help. There was no way of getting through to him.”

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