Shocking footage of a rat eating chocolate from a Liverpool shop counter has swept social media locally, with onlookers appalled at what they saw.
The video, filmed at Zen’s Newz n’ Booze on County Road in Walton, shows the rodent appearing unfazed by screaming people outside the store, before it scurries away beneath the counter as a shop worker enters the scene.
One man who witnessed the incident, but asked not to be named, said: “This is horrific. I was shocked at this while waiting at the bus stop.”
JMU Journalism visited the off-licence and attempted to speak to the member of staff who can be seen in the footage, but he refused to comment on the issue.
Liverpool City Council has confirmed it is investigating the incident.
YouTube: (via Callum Carroll Facebook)
Previously published nationwide figures by the British Pest Control Association suggest that the rise of Britain’s rat population is particularly alarming in Liverpool, with it being ranked second only to Birmingham for rodent reports.
Liverpool is one of the few cities in which local authorities still provide free extermination service for domestic properties, but not for businesses.
Last year, council figures revealed there were 7,181 rat sightings reported to the city’s pest control authorities, which is 33% higher than the two years earlier. Despite the rise, figures for mice sightings have remained lower, with 3,496 reports in 2015.