Diego Maradona’s doctor has denied responsibility for the football legend’s death after police raided his surgery over the weekend seizing laptops, medical records and mobile devices.
Argentine media reports that police were trying to establish any negligence in Maradona’s treatment and that searches of premises belonging to the neurosurgeon Leopoldo Luque, were carried out as part of an investigation into involuntary manslaughter.
Maradona died of a heart attack on Wednesday at the age of 60, sparking a huge outpouring of grief around the world.
His death also triggered a police inquiry and claims from Maradona’s lawyer that emergency services had taken too long to arrive after being called to his home in the capital Buenos Aires.
Luque, who broke down in tears as he spoke to journalists, said he had been surprised by the decision to search his properties, taking away documents including the footballer’s medical history.
Newspaper Clarín said Luque addressed reporters on Sunday afternoon after police had left his home following a three-hour search.
“I feel terrible because my friend has died,” before adding: “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,” Luque added, according to news website Infobae.
It was reportedly Luque, Maradona’s doctor since 2016, who called emergency services to the player’s home on Wednesday after ‘El Diego‘ suffered an apparent heart attack.
Luque told Clarín his relationship with the notoriously tempestuous footballer had been like “that of father and a son, a rebellious father”.
Maradona’s lawyer, Matias Morla, on Thursday said he would ask for a full investigation of the circumstances of the footballer’s death, 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,” Matias said on Thursday in a Twitter post.
The daughters of Diego Maradona as well as lawyer Morla targeted Luque. The doctor assured that he was not responsible and he agreed on one of the family’s concerns to find a clinician to attend to the health of the world champion.
“What I hope is that when this is over someone apologizes to me and thanks me as the whole family thanked me”, He assured.
