Cellphone video shows rats scurrying inside Norwood deli; owner says there's no rodent issue

The owner of a Norwood deli said his eatery doesn’t have a rodent problem after cellphone video captured rats scurrying inside the establishment early Sunday morning.

News 12 Staff

Oct 12, 2020, 11:21 PM

Updated 1,301 days ago

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The owner of a Norwood deli said his eatery doesn’t have a rodent problem after cellphone video captured rats scurrying inside the establishment early Sunday morning.
The video of rodents inside the AKS Halal Deli and Grill on the corner of East 204th Street and Hull Avenue was sent to News 12 by an anonymous person.
The video appears to show at least four rats running around two-liter soda bottles and hopping over plastic food containers inside of a glass case, which serves as the salad bar during business hours.
Ali Shahzad, who has been the owner of the deli for 15 years, said he's never seen a rodent in the store.
"Maybe people bring or throw here, make video and go, I don’t know, but inspector come in one by one, he check, he said everything OK," Shahzad said.
Shahzad said he thinks maybe someone planted the rats in the video and that there's no rodent issue in the store. He said Sunday an inspector came out and said everything was OK, and he showed News 12 an "A" rating that the deli received back in March.
"Actually, when I was coming into work 10, 11 o’clock buying a soda and then, I seen one run inside by the thing and then ran back out. Me and this other guy were surprised because no one was like concerned," said Jason Barclay. He said he works the overnight shift nearby and is a regular at the deli...or was. He said the area has a rat problem with trash bags frequently being eaten through on the street.
"Last night, this place was flooded, but that, inside the store like that, I’m not going in there again," Barclay said.
Shahzad said he cleans and covers the food at night and that an exterminator came on Sunday and said there was no infestation. He added that he has a new exterminator service as of Sunday that will come every two weeks for inspections.
News 12 reached out to the Department of Agriculture and is still waiting to hear back.


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