A man named Chen woke up recently to find a scorpion crawling over his body. Snapping on the bedroom light, he found his bedroom to be full of scorpions. He gathered his family and worked to capture several hundred of the arachnids. When they left the apartment, they found their neighbors had been battling the poison-tipped beasts, and their landlord, who wants them out to make way for a construction project, is suspected of letting them loose.

According to the Shanghai Daily, a witness saw a man holding a bucket walked out of the offices of the real estate company in charge of the apartment complex. The man was seen pouring the contents of the bucket into the windows of the complex. Later, the streets outside were awash in scorpions.

The apartment complex is slated for demolition but the residents inside have yet to sign deals that would pay them to leave.

The company denied involvement. “The move was too despicable,” a company manager said, “We wouldn’t lift a stone only to have our own toes squashed.”

So if you think your landlord is a jerk, just be glad that we have the consumer protections that we do in the US. If your landlord is trying unscrupulous tactics to get you to leave, whether they be scorpions or otherwise, it’s a good idea to bone up on your state’s landlord tenant laws and learn your rights.

Scorpions on the loose in Shenzhen [Shanghai Daily]
Scorpions over-run Shenzhen apartments [radio86] (Thanks to GitEmSteveDave!)

Want more consumer news? Visit our parent organization, Consumer Reports, for the latest on scams, recalls, and other consumer issues.