The city council of Mangaratiba, on the outskirts of the Brazilian city of Rio de Janeiro, has fined international soccer player Neymar 16 million reais (three million euros) for building an artificial lake without a permit.
The municipality said it imposed four fines for “environmental violations in the construction of an artificial lake at the player’s mansion,” which is currently located in France’s Paris Saint-Germain, according to the filing.
The total amount of fines, “more than 16 million reais”, was determined by the State Ministry of Mangaratiba, a tourist region located about 130 kilometers from Rio de Janeiro, said the secretary of the chamber.
Among the “dozens of violations identified,” the authorities named “unauthorized work subject to environmental control,” unauthorized capture and diversion of river water, and “unauthorized land acquisition and suppression of vegetation.”
Neymar has 20 days to appeal against the sanction, which was initially set at five million reais (nearly one million euros).
On June 22, following complaints on social media, authorities discovered several violations of environmental laws at an elite home where workers were building an artificial lake and beach.
The authorities closed the venue and ordered all activities to be suspended, but the Brazilian press reported that Neymar later had a party at the mansion and took a dip in the lake.
In December, the footballer was acquitted by a Spanish court in a case in which he was accused of violations in the transfer of Santos to FC Barcelona in 2013.
The judges of the provincial court in Barcelona decided to acquit Neymar and eight other defendants in the same process, considering the lack of evidence of wrongdoing and, therefore, “damage to the plaintiffs”.
In addition to Neymar, the defendants included his parents, former FC Barcelona presidents Sandro Rosell and Josep Maria Bartomeu, former Santos manager Odilio Rodriguez and a career management company.
The decision comes a month and a half after the Spanish prosecutor’s office dropped all corruption and fraud charges against Neymar related to alleged violations related to the transfer of the Brazilian footballer to Barcelona in 2013, considering them “presumptions without evidence.”
Initially, the public ministry demanded two years in prison for the Brazilian footballer and a fine of 10 million euros.
The case was initiated by a complaint from DIS, which owned 40% of Neymar’s rights when he played for Santos and sued him in June 2015, alleging that the player, his family and Santos concealed the real cost of the transfer. ., to the detriment of this company.
Author: Portuguese
Source: CM Jornal
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