Brazilian star Neymar escaped a fine of $3 million after a Brazilian court suspended the implementation of a previous ruling imposed on the Al Hilal Saudi Football Club striker for building a lake in his palace located on the outskirts of Rio de Janeiro without an environmental permit.
The ruling issued by Judge Adriana Ramos de Mello, dated Monday, was based on a report from the government’s environmental agency confirming that the project did not in fact require special environmental permits.
The judge said, “Since the fines applied were in the millions of dollars, continuing to demand (payment)… would cause a significant, disproportionate, and even illegal bias” against the former Barcelona, Spain, and French Paris Saint-Germain star.
Last July, the Mangaratiba Municipal Council imposed 4 fines for “environmental violations related to the construction of an artificial lake in the player’s palace” with a total value of 16 million riyals ($3.3 million at the time).
The municipal council said that this amount was determined by the public prosecutor’s office in Mangaratiba, the tourist area located 130 kilometers from Rio, where the “Seleção” star, who has been sidelined for a long time due to injury, has his palace.
Among the “dozens of violations” monitored, the authorities indicated “carrying out work subject to environmental control without permission,” diverting river water without a permit, in addition to “clearing land and uprooting plants without permission.”
On June 22, after complaints based on posts on social media, local authorities discovered “various environmental violations,” including the diversion of a watercourse, the unauthorized extraction of water from a river, and the extraction of water to supply an artificial lake. Unauthorized excavations were also observed, as well as the use of beach sand without a permit.
The authorities cordoned off the site and ordered all activities to stop, but Brazilian media reported that Neymar held a party there and swam in the lake.
But the judge upheld the findings of the state Environment Agency, saying in her ruling that its inspection “confirmed that no (environmental) license was required for such activities and therefore the alleged violations did not exist.”
Neymar (32 years old) bought the property in 2016, which – according to local media – is located on an area of 10,000 square meters of land and includes a helipad, a spa, a “sauna”, a massage room, a gym, and dining areas.
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