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CBS News
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- CBS News
Brooklyn community celebrates return of missing bodega cat
A celebration was held Friday in Brooklyn for a once-missing bodega cat that was returned home. Earlier in May, CBS News New York spoke with Ali Alesaei, who manages Prince Deli and Juice Bar. Some like to say he co-manages with the true prince of the shop, Snowy the Persian cat. Video shows stranger walking off with beloved bodega cat Surveillance video from May 8 shows Snowy being taken by a man Alesaei says he's never seen in his 24-hour store before. Alesaei put missing posters up in the bodega and around the neighborhood, offering a reward for Snowy's safe return. "It was all over the chats that we have for the neighborhood, and people were looking around and trying to find Snowy," Flatbush resident Sierra Fox said. After two weeks, Alesaei said he finally got word of his beloved cat's whereabouts. "Someone come to us, he said, 'I saw his face in the news and I know where he's at,' and he bring him back for us. Thanks God," he said. Alesaei believes the person who picked Snowy up may have just left the 5-month-old cat by another bodega about three blocks down. The person who brought him back wanted to remain anonymous. "I'm so happy because we found Snowy after two weeks of darkness," Alesaei said. Reunion party thrown for Snowy's return The missing signs were quickly replaced with reunion party signs for the fuzzy feline. Alesaei set up a tent and table outside the shop with balloons and streamers, offering community members cookies with photos of Snowy on them and a three-tier cake. A celebration was held in Brooklyn on May 30, 2025, for a once-missing bodega cat that was returned home. CBS News New York "Snowy is a neighborhood celebrity," one Flatbush resident said. "It shows that a lot of people in this community really care – care about each other, care about our neighbors, our animals, our bodegas," Fox said. "We all need this. It's perfect," Flatbush resident Lisa Zbar said. Customers say they're excited to pop back into their neighborhood store and say hi to their favorite employee again. To make sure he never goes missing again, Snowy now has an AirTag attached to his collar. "We bought the tracker and we have to close the door at midnight because I don't want him to be outside no more," Alesaei said. Alesaei said he considered getting a new cat during those two weeks, but he didn't, telling CBS News New York that Snowy is irreplaceable.
CBS News
12-05-2025
- CBS News
Video offers clues in Flatbush, Brooklyn bodega cat's apparent theft
Neighbors in Brooklyn are trying to solve the mystery of a beloved cat stolen from a local bodega. The cat's owner believes new video could help solve the case. Snowy the bodega cat's disappearance A beautiful 5-month-old Persian named Snowy was stolen Thursday night from the Prince Deli on Cortelyou Road in Flatbush. Ali Alesie is the store manager, and Snowy's rightful owner. "A family member for the whole neighborhood. Everybody likes this cat," Alesie said. "The cat used to stay here and go outside and come back. It's well known in this area. Everybody knows the cat belongs to the bodega." Surveillance video just outside the front door shows Snowy in the arms of a stranger who was last seen walking west toward Marlborough Road. "I don't know him," Alesie said. A hiccup in the police investigation Alesie took the video straight to the police, but said the NYPD is no longer actively investigating after he says workers at a bodega down the block saw the cat get dropped off in front of the store. It's now believed the guy on the footage no longer has the cat. "He threw it. He threw the cat like three blocks," Alesie said. He's now posting flyers and offering a reward for a cat that neighbors who frequent the bodega know and love. "It's horrible because I have a pet. I have a cat at home. If somebody would steal it, I don't know what to say," customer Alina Moldan said. "My message is please bring it back. He's a family member," Alesie added.
