Four months after his right ankle operation, Neymar has not yet really found football news with Paris Saint-Germain. The star of the Seleçao is meanwhile talking a lot about him… in the environment section (spoiler: not for the best). Brazilian authorities have just announced on Monday that a magistrate has sentenced the 31-year-old player to a fine of 3 million euros for having built an artificial lake in his mansion in the suburbs of Rio de Janeiro. All without an environmental permit.
The Mangaratiba city council imposed four fines for “environmental violations in the construction of an artificial lake in the player’s mansion”, the council secretariat said in a statement. “The penalties amount to more than 16 million reais” (3 million euros), the statement said. This amount was fixed by the parquet floor of Mangaratiba, a tourist area located about 130 kilometers from Rio, where the PSG striker therefore has a mansion.
It all started with complaints on social networks
Among the “dozens of offences” identified, the authorities cited “the execution of works subject to environmental control without authorization”, the capture and diversion of river water without authorization, and “the removal of land and the removal of vegetation without authorization”. Neymar has twenty days to appeal the sanction, the amount of which was initially set at 5 million reais, or 953,000 euros.
On June 22, following complaints on social media, authorities found several environmental violations at the luxury property, where workers were building an artificial lake and beach. Authorities closed the site and ordered a halt to all activity, but Brazilian media reported that Neymar held a party there and bathed in the lake. The Brazilian press service of the PSG striker did not wish to comment on this news.