Diego Maradona accused of rape and abuse

A 37-year-old Cuban woman has levelled accusations of rape, violence and abuse against late Argentine idol Diego Maradona. She claimed that she had an affair with Maradona as a minor 20 years ago. She also accused the Argentine star and his entourage of holding her against her will.

Mavys Alvarez Rego, who now lives in Miami, said in a press conference that she met Maradona at 16 when he was undergoing drug treatment.

“I was dazzled, he won me over… But after two months everything started to change”, AFP quoted her as saying. She claimed that Maradona had pursued her into trying cocaine which in turn will make her dependent.

The footballing legend died from a heart attack a year ago at the age of 60.

“I loved him but I hated him too, I even thought about suicide,” she said.

Maradona is considered to be one of the greatest footballers in history. He inspired Argentina to the 1986 World Cup.

The former Argentinian coach died last year after having brain surgery on a blood clot and also a decades-long battle with cocaine and alcohol addictions.

The victim, a mother of two children, said that her relationship with Maradona lasted “between four and five years”. She was subjected to abuse.

During the conference, she claimed that she was held against her will for several weeks in 2001 during a trip to Buenos Aires with Maradona. In her allegations, she said that she was banned from going out alone and was also forced into a breast augmentation operation.

The 37-year-old said that Maradona had “raped” her on one occasion at their home in Havana. She also added several other episodes of physical violence.

“Alvarez Rego has not filed a complaint herself but is giving evidence this week in Buenos Aires to an Argentine prosecutor in connection with a complaint brought by an Argentine NGO,” news agency AFP reported.

“I have done what I had to do, the rest I leave to the courts,” she said.

“I achieved my goal: to say what happened to me, to prevent it from happening to others, or at least so that other girls feel the strength, the courage to speak up.”