Maradona’s Certifying Doctor Says Star Was Dead for Hours Upon Arrival

Juan Carlos Pinto, the physician who signed Diego Armando Maradona’s death certificate, testified Thursday in the ongoing trial over the football icon’s passing that Maradona had been dead for several hours when he arrived at the residence on November 25, 2020.

Pinto, a medic with the emergency medical services company +Vida, stated he received a “code red” alert at 12:15 p.m. That day and was the first medical responder to reach Maradona’s home in Tigre, Buenos Aires Province. Upon arrival, he found the former Argentina captain already without vital signs.

“I found Maradona lifeless,” Pinto declared during his testimony, as reported by multiple Argentine news outlets covering the proceedings. “He presented signs of ‘mandibular rigidity’ and ‘cadaveric lividity’ — purple-colored patches that appear approximately two hours after death.”

Pinto elaborated on the forensic significance of these observations, noting that lividity becomes fixed between five and six hours postmortem. “If death had occurred recently and the body was moved, the lividity could shift to another area. In this case, it did not,” he added, suggesting the body had remained undisturbed after death.

The doctor described Maradona’s physical condition at the scene, emphasizing signs consistent with prolonged deterioration. “I encountered an obese patient, severely edematous, with a very swollen face, swollen limbs — especially the lower extremities — and a globular abdomen,” Pinto testified. He attributed the visible swelling and fluid accumulation to chronic health issues that developed over time.

“This edema is not something that happens instantly,” Pinto stressed. “It develops over several hours or even days.” He specifically referenced ascites — fluid buildup in the abdominal cavity — as a potential indicator of underlying cardiac, hepatic, or renal failure, noting that leg edema typically points to heart insufficiency.

These observations align with the official autopsy findings, which determined Maradona’s cause of death as “acute pulmonary edema secondary to a decompensated chronic heart failure.” Pinto maintained consistency with his initial statement from the first trial, which was annulled in May 2025 due to judicial misconduct by one of the presiding judges.

The current proceedings represent the second trial in the case, where seven healthcare professionals face charges of “simple homicide with eventual intent.” Prosecutors allege the medical team ignored multiple warning signs in the days leading up to Maradona’s death, failing to provide adequate care despite his known vulnerabilities.

Pinto’s testimony forms part of a broader pattern of evidence presented during the trial. Earlier in the week, two police officers who were among the first to arrive at the scene described finding Maradona unresponsive in his bed, corroborating the timeline suggested by the medical findings.

The trial continues to draw significant attention in Argentina and across the global football community, as it examines not only the circumstances of Maradona’s passing but likewise broader questions about medical accountability and duty of care for high-profile patients with complex health histories.

As the legal process unfolds, the focus remains on establishing a clear chronology of events on November 25, 2020, and determining whether timely intervention could have altered the outcome for one of sport’s most enduring figures.

For ongoing updates on this developing story, readers are encouraged to follow official court communications and verified news sources covering the trial.