If you’re a New Yorker, you’ve undoubtedly experienced a food vendor (or non-food vendor) ripping off a tourist. It’s just so easy to take advantage.
But one downtown food cart vendor has taken price gouging to unprecedented levels: Ahmed Mohammed was caught on camera charging as much as $30 for a hot dog and a drink.
Mohammed, who parks his cart near the World Trade Center, charges some customers $3 and other customers $30 (depending on their accent, of course). But justice has been served: First Precinct cops visited the hot dog seller this week and stuck it to him. Mohammed is now facing more than $600 in fines, reports NYDN.
@JessLappin What? A $30 hot dog?! We paid him a visit. 3 ECB summonses. #PostYourPrices #WeWillBeBack @DowntownNYC pic.twitter.com/y8HL9WO6qC
— NYPD 1st Precinct (@NYPD1Pct) May 20, 2015
The City Department of Consumer Affairs says Mohammed’s prices are supposed to be posted on his cart—but they aren’t, which allows him to quote customers anything he wants for a dog.
The shiesty vendor’s unethical practices were first pointed out by WNBC New York, who caught Mohammed charging one French tourist $15 for a dog and pretzel. When NYDN reached out to Mohammed for comment, the con-artist vendor replied,
We’ve seen some truly opportunistic New York salespeople in our day, but Ahmed Mohammed might take the cake for unabashed shiestiness.