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A man died after falling down a 130-foot hole he dug under his kitchen floor after dreaming there was gold buried under his property in Minas Gerais, Brazil.
João Pimenta, 71, lost his balance Thursday afternoon and plunged down the massive pit he excavated, which ended up being as tall as a 12-story building.
Neighbors told local media outlets that following a “prophetic dream,” Pimenta had become obsessed with the idea that there was gold buried beneath his kitchen floor and had spent over a year digging for the treasure.
One neighbor, Arnaldo da Silva, told Globo he had tried to advise the elderly man against digging the dangerously deep hole, but the man insisted, convinced he would reach gold if he continued his search.
Da Silva even said that in recent days, his neighbor had spoken of finding dynamite to blow up a large rock that had been hindering the excavation.
Extraordinary photos of the hole, which was around 35 inches in diameter, have circulated online as well as in Brazilian media.
According to the neighbor, Pimenta would also pay others to help dig the hole, increasing their rate of pay as the chasm grew deeper. Most recently he had paid others up to $500 to assist in his efforts.
Local police responded to his home Thursday after he had fallen and the elderly man’s body was taken to a medical center for an autopsy.
He was found to have suffered head injuries and broken legs as well as other fractures and was pronounced dead.
Officials were unsure exactly how long Pimenta had been working on the hole.
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