Abuse case dropped against the late legend Maradona

An Argentine judge yesterday dropped a lawsuit brought by the former Cuban girlfriend of the late soccer legend Diego Armando Maradona and his entourage over allegations of mistreatment and violence.

The case was opened in September after an Argentine NGO filed a complaint in the Argentine capital, Buenos Aires, after witnessing an interview given by a woman named Mavis Alvares Rego to American media.

Alvarez, who now lives in Miami with her two children, was 16 when she met soccer star Maradona, who was in his forties at the time, and living in Cuba, where he was undergoing drug treatment.

Alvarez claimed that during their four- to five-year relationship, she was raped and held against her will.

Federal Judge Daniel Ravicas wrote in his dropping case report that the alleged crimes were "mostly carried out by Maradona, with secondary participation from his entourage between November 9, 2001 and January 19, 2002."

Ravicas considered that Maradona's death in November 2020 "nullified" the legal claim over the alleged facts, which were further identified, and which occurred more than 20 years ago.

Five of Maradona's entourage denied any involvement in the case.

In a response contrary to the decision, the legal representative of Mavis Alvares in Argentina, Fernando Megues, expressed his regret that the judge did not call witnesses.

He stressed that the complaint targeted Maradona's entourage, and that the star's death did not invalidate the lawsuit.

He announced to AFP his decision to appeal to the investigation chamber.

Alvarez told the Argentine press that during a trip to Buenos Aires with Maradona in 2001, she was held against her will for several weeks in a hotel by Maradona's entourage, prevented from going out alone, forced to have a breast augmentation, and was sexually assaulted.

Follow our latest local and sports news and the latest political and economic developments via Google news