Two of Diego Maradona’s sisters are accused of fraud that allegedly occurred in the administration of the registered trademark bearing the name of the Argentine football star. Rita Mabel and Claudia Norma Maradona are named by the Argentine Justice as part of a scheme that also involves, among others, the lawyer and representative of the player until his death in 2020. The case began after a complaint filed by Dalma and Gianinna Maradona, daughters of the Argentine idol.
The indictment was issued on September 18 of this year by Chamber IV of the National Court of Appeals in Criminal and Corrective Matters and was confirmed last Monday (the 19th) by Chamber VII of the same Court, according to the Venezuelan newspaper El Nacional.
Also appearing in the ruling are Matías Morla, the lawyer and representative of Maradona up to his death on November 25, 2020, and his assistant Maximiliano Pomargo, both indicted in the case. EFE had access to the document. According to the investigations, there was a transfer of the usufruct of the “Diego Maradona” brand to the company Sattvica SA, owned by Morla.
The company held broad powers of administration and disposition over the player’s assets. The court also ordered a preventive embargo of 2 billion pesos (about 1.35 million dollars or 7.47 million reais). This amount was calculated based on the “profits derived from the exploitation of the Diego Maradona trademarks, according to the exchange rate and the variation over the years” and “the potential compensation that may also result was assessed,” says a passage of the decision to which El Nacional had access.
The company was classified as a front, although with an active registration, for not having recorded economic activities in recent years. For the Justice, the transfer of the brand was a maneuver to prevent Italian tax authorities from accessing the revenues. A legal battle lasted more than 30 years after Maradona was accused of allegedly using companies in Liechtenstein to avoid paying legal fees for his image rights between 1985 and 1990 through the Napoli club, where he played.
“The actions carried out by those involved after the death of Diego Armando Maradona, abusing positions originating from simulated acts, affected the rights of the heirs,” ruled the Justice.
The Maradona brand includes, among other things, the commercial rights, image rights, and intellectual property rights associated with Diego Maradona. This includes products such as sports clothing, perfumes, and even audiovisual material.
