RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Ronaldinho Gaúcho agreed with the Porto Alegre City Hall to pay a debt of R$7.5 million (US$1.9 million) IPTU (Property Tax).
The former player, twice elected the best in the world, paid the first of 60 installments last Tuesday, worth R$145,282.04, reported the city hall on Wednesday.
The debt relates to a property located in the Restinga neighborhood, in the southern zone of the capital. Under the installment plan, the City Prosecutor’s Office (PGM) should suspend the lawsuits that were being processed in court to enforce the debt.
Ronaldinho had properties frozen and mortgaged due to tax debts and also to the courts because of a fine of approximately R$9.5 million for environmental damage.
According to the Municipal Treasury to GloboEsporte.com at the end of August, Ronaldinho’s debts with the city government exceeded R$9.91 million – which turned the former player into the largest debtor of IPTU of Porto Alegre, among individuals. However, Ronaldinho’s family lawyer, Sérgio Queiroz, challenged the figures at the time.
The amount corresponded to taxes on 18 properties accumulated in the past six years. Part of the debt had already been negotiated in 29 installment payment terms, totaling R$1.96 million.
On July 29th, the newspaper Folha de S. Paulo disclosed in a report that Ronaldinho had 57 properties frozen by the courts: 55 in Rio Grande do Sul and two in Rio de Janeiro.
The seizure was imposed to force the payment of a fine of R$9.5 million for environmental crimes for the illegal construction of a fishing platform and dock on the edge of Guaíba, in the southern zone of Porto Alegre. The work was carried out in a permanent preservation area and without environmental licensing.
In November last year, the Rio Grande do Sul Court of Appeals ordered the seizure of Ronaldinho and his brother’s passports, as a way to force the payment of compensation for environmental damage.
Two weeks ago, the Assis Moreira family reached an agreement with the Prosecutor’s Office to terminate the lawsuit and recover their passports, with the payment of a fine and other compensation.
Although he has not been working professionally since 2015, when he left Fluminense, Ronaldinho only made his retirement official in early 2018. Since then, he has had occasional public appearances. In January this year, he took part in the draw for the Copa América. Earlier this month, he was appointed Brazilian tourism ambassador by the federal government.
Source: Globo Esporte