diff --git a/src/libstore/nar-accessor.cc b/src/libstore/nar-accessor.cc
index 88b027ff3..ff7890af8 100644
--- a/src/libstore/nar-accessor.cc
+++ b/src/libstore/nar-accessor.cc
@@ -51,7 +51,6 @@ struct NarIndexer : ParseSink, StringSource
 
     void preallocateContents(unsigned long long size) override
     {
-        assert(currentPath != "");
         currentStart = string(s, pos, 16);
         members.emplace(currentPath,
             NarMember{FSAccessor::Type::tRegular, isExec, pos, size});