Michael Jackson Gives Up Neverland Ranch

The singer Micheal Jackson has decided to give up the title to his Neverland ranch and transfer the deed to a company that he partly controls. He filed a grant deed on Monday on the ranch that would make the new owner an entity called the Sycamore Valley Ranch Co. Sycamore Valley Ranch Co. is a joint venture between Jackson and an affiliate of Colony Capital LLC.

Earlier this year, Jackson went into default on the $24.5 million that he owes on the property and Colony Capital bailed him out. Colony Capital is a Los Angeles-based real estate investment company that is ran by the billionaire Tom Barrack. The company also owns several properties in Las Vegas, including the Las Vegas Hilton. Neverland Ranch was called Sycamore Valley Ranch before Jackson bought it in 1988 and turned it into a miniature amusement park where thousands of children were invited to the property.

Jackson has been struggling to pay his debts to the ranch since his arrest in 2003 where he was accused of molesting a 13 year boy at the ranch. He has not been to the property since being acquitted of the charges.

Thousands of People Evacuated in China

In China, 200,000 people were evacuated by early Saturday to safer places due to a lake formed by the recent earthquake threatening to breach its dam. Hundred of Chinese troops have been working to drain Tangjashan Lake in Sichuan province. The lake was formed when a hillside plunged into a river valley during the earthquake on May 12^th that killed 68,977 people and left 17,974 missing, according to most recent updates.

A runoff channel has been recently completed and water is expected to be discharged between Sunday and Tuesday. Another 1.3 million people in the area will be evacuated if the barrier of the lake fully opens and floods the area.