Building Lakes and Beaches at Home, Neymar Fined IDR 50 Billion

– A prosecutor in Brazil fined soccer star Neymar 16 million reais ($3.3 million) for building a lake at his luxury home on the outskirts of Rio de Janeiro without an environmental permit.

The city council in Mangaratiba issued four fines for environmental violations in the construction of an artificial lake at Neymar’s house.

“The sanctions amount to more than 16 million reais,” the council secretariat said in a statement.

Among the dozens of violations detected, these include carrying out work without regard to the EIA and without a permit, taking and diverting river water without a permit, and removing soil and suppressing vegetation without a permit.

“Neymar has 20 days to appeal the fine, which was initially set at five million reais, or nearly one million dollars.”

Neymar bought the Mangaratiba mansion in 2016. According to Brazilian media, the house sits on 10,000 square meters (107,000 square feet) of land and is equipped with a heliport, spa and gym.

The authorities immediately took action on June 22 after complaints from social media posts. Officers found several environmental violations at the luxury property, including workers building artificial lakes and beaches.

The authorities closed the site and ordered all activity to stop. But Brazilian media reported that Neymar held a party there and took a bath in the lake.

Neymar is currently recovering from surgery on his right ankle, which he underwent in Doha in March. The former Barcelona man has not played since February and there are doubts about his future at PSG.

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