Dubai: Authorities in Al Ain city were shocked to discover that a resident had turned one of his bedrooms into a grocery shop, and was selling expired goods to the neighbourhood.
Officials at Al Ain City Municipality said the incident occurred in the Ghunaima area, and that a number of products were confiscated, including food, sweets, juices, drinks and toys from the unlicensed shop.
In a statement to the Arabic daily paper Al Ittihad, officials explained that the municipality’s call centre had initially received a complaint about the grocery shop, which was operating from a resident’s home.
The unidentified caller had also told authorities that the shop was well-known within the district, and confirmed that it had been operating for a considerable period of time.
Al Ain City Municipality, in cooperation with Al Ain Police and the Abu Dhabi Department of Economic Development, followed up on the complaint and obtained permission from the public prosecution to raid the house.
Inspectors were granted access into the resident’s home in less than 24 hours and during the search, found that a number of expired goods for sale, which were stored in a manner that jeopardised the public’s health and safety.
The case has been transferred to the public prosecution.
