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The Death of José Rico Completes Ten Years, While His Unfinished Castle in Limeira Remains a Controversial Legacy Marked by Disputes, Invasions, and Neglect
Ten years ago, on March 3, 2015, the country singer José Rico, from the duo with Milionário, passed away in Americana, São Paulo. He was 68 years old and died after heart failure and a cardiac arrest. The information was confirmed by the team at Unimed Hospital in Americana.
At the time, an official statement released by the institution highlighted the pain of the loss. The text informed that the artist had been hospitalized in the morning with complications in the heart, kidneys, and knee but did not survive. The statement ended by asking for prayers for the singer who marked generations.
The Castle in Limeira
Despite living in Americana, José Rico maintained another emblematic address. In Limeira, he built a castle designed by himself. The place, however, was never completed and today remains abandoned.
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During the routine drainage of a lagoon in England, an employee found the nearly complete skeleton of a 10-meter, 180-million-year-old “sea dragon,” the largest and most complete marine reptile ever discovered in the United Kingdom.
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A college in Peru turned a street billboard into a ‘factory’ for drinking water that pulls moisture from the air: in three months, the panel produced almost 9,500 liters in one of the driest capitals on the planet.
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The coast of Pernambuco has more than a dozen deliberately sunken ships at the bottom of the sea, and what started as a junkyard has become one of the largest wreck diving parks in Brazil, a refuge for turtles and schools of fish.
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A woman left São Paulo to help her 88-year-old father in the hinterland of Paraíba, found the abandoned family farm, switched cassava and cattle for organic fruits, and harvested 24 tons of melon and watermelon in the semi-arid region, proving that tradition, irrigation, and planning can transform forgotten land into a sustainable business.
As reported by Caras magazine, the castle was recently shown on the program Fantástico, when his children Sami and Sara opened the property’s doors.
The Interrupted Dream
The project’s castle was a childhood wish of the country singer. However, he believed in a prediction made by a fortune teller.
The woman reportedly said that when he finished the construction, he would die. Therefore, José Rico never completed the building.
This story helps explain why, even after so much time, the property remains unfinished. Additionally, the lack of residents has opened the door to bigger problems.
Disputes and Invasions
Since José Rico’s death, the property has become a center of disputes within the family. The situation intensified because two other children of the singer were legally recognized, increasing the conflicts.
Moreover, the inheritance includes labor claims that complicate the division of the estate. During this period, the castle was also targeted by invaders.
Furniture and decorative items were taken, increasing the state of neglect.
Today, the castle remains a symbol of the singer’s unfulfilled dream. A space that mixes childhood memories, superstition, and the marks of a career that enchanted Brazil.
With information from Aventuras na História.
