'House Has Snakes, Rats, Cockroaches and Bees': Georgia Family

LAFAYETTE, GA — The Pugliese family in this Walker County town has been sleeping at a family member's house the last few nights after they said their rental house was full of rats, cockroaches, bees and snakes, according to News Channel 9 in Chattanooga, Tennesee.

News Channel 9 reported that Harry Pugliese, who has lived in the house with his wife, Susan, and their 13-year-old daughter since January, has complained to his landlord "20, 30, 40 times" about maintenance issues such as a leaky roof. Pugliese said the landlord, Jeff Stafford, told him he didn't have the money to make the repairs.

But earlier this week, a leaky roof became a lesser priority when Pugliese said he found snakes breaking through a hole in the home's ceiling.

The Puglieses said they made further complaints but have not seen any action.

"(Stafford) acts like he doesn't care," Susan Pugliese said. "He said, 'Well, if there are snakes in the ceiling, they'll be taking care of the rats.'"

For some time, the Puglieses have been refusing to pay rent until the hole in the ceiling was fixed and the pests were out.

But Stafford said he wasn't told about the pest issues and that he had sent somebody to fix the leaky roof two months ago. The landlord said rent could not be held for maintenance issues anyway, which is why he was forced to evict the family.

However, the Puglieses refute this claim and said they have chosen to move out because they can't sleep.

When asked about the rats, snakes and other ongoing issues, Stafford called it "a difficult situation." However, the landlord told News Channel 9 that he had not been contacted by the Pugliese family as often as they claim.

"They mentioned they had contacted me 40 or 50 times. Probably three to five times I've talked to them since they've lived there," Stafford said.

David Hamilton, the LaFayette city manager, said the Pugliese family's best course of action would be to call the city's Codes Enforcement Department, which could do an inspection and present their case in court.

But News Channel 9 reported that the Codes Enforcement Department had not yet been contacted by the Puglieses.

Instead, the Pugliese family is already seeking new, less rodent- and snake-infested pastures.

"We are trying to get everything out (of the rental house) by Saturday," the family told WGAU Radio.