The illegal speakeasy and hookah lounge near where a Philadelphia police officer was fatally shot last month must shut down, a city judge ordered Wednesday.
On Aug. 16, the sidewalk outside the after-hours nightclub that was advertised as “Nipsey’s” on social media became the scene of the killing of 29-year-old Officer Alhassane Barry.
Barry and another man had been arguing inside the Elmwood Avenue property in Southwest Philadelphia before the confrontation spilled outside, where the man opened fire on Barry, killing him and injuring another man, according to investigators.
Immediately after the officer’s death, questions arose over Nipsey’s business practices. The property was not licensed to operate as a nightclub, city records show, and its owner had been handed a series of L&I violations in recent years.
District Attorney Larry Krasner, speaking after Barry’s killing, vowed to shutter what he called a “nuisance business,” adding that investigators believe activity at Nipsey’s may have been connected to another death this summer.
The matter was settled Wednesday in Common Pleas Court, when Judge Christopher R. Hall issued an injunction barring the property’s owner, Tran Yen, from conducting any commercial business there for one year. That includes any activity related to selling or offering alcohol, according to the ruling, which is enforceable by the Sheriff’s Office and city police.
A spokesperson for the district attorney’s office, Solomon Leach, said the decision “effectively shuts down this illegal speakeasy.”
“[W]hat we do know is that this establishment — and others like it — operated outside the law and was a problem waiting to happen,” the spokesperson said after the ruling.
Thomas Kenney, a lawyer for the property’s owner, Tran Yen, of Newark, Del., said his client was “shocked as anyone else” about Barry’s killing.
“We are cooperating with the Commonwealth to make sure there are no further nuisances,” he said. He declined to comment on the nature of the connection between Tran and those who operated Nipsey’s.
Tran could not be reached for comment.
In 2021 and 2024, Tran was issued violation notices from the city Department of Licenses and Inspections, violations that were filed anew after Barry’s death, city records show.
In addition to being cited for operating as a nightclub without proper permitting, the property was cited for using extension cords rather than permanent electrical wiring, storing unsecured gas containers, and having combustible materials in a rear lot.
Images investigators recovered from inside the lounge show patrons packed into the space amid brightly colored decorations and neon lights.
The violations carried $3,200 in fines.
Still, Krasner vowed to close Nipsey’s through court action.
Wednesday’s order to do that came as the DA’s office continues to investigate the circumstances surrounding Barry’s death — including the possibility that the shooting was in self-defense.
Investigators released images of the suspected shooter and prosecutors are having ongoing conversations with the man and his lawyer and are in possession of a firearm they believe he used to shoot Barry.
They are also interviewing witnesses and analyzing footage from multiple surveillance camera angles that show portions of the shooting.