NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — The Metro Nashville Police Department (MNPD) sent a SWAT team to a bar Friday afternoon “after more than two years” of answering calls “concerning fights, assaults and shootings” at the business.

In a tweet sent out at 3:40 p.m. on Friday, April 7, the MNPD said officers had just entered and secured 3000 Bar Nashville at 1516-A Demonbreun Street.

Police said the bar was being padlocked “pursuant to a public nuisance temporary injunction issued under seal this week by a Criminal Court judge.”

As a result, the 3000 Bar’s operators and anyone associated with them are forbidden from entering the premises until a hearing takes place on April 12, officials said.

In certain cases where enough sworn evidence is presented to show a public nuisance exists, the court may order a business to temporarily cease operations.

Police noted years of alleged problems at the bar, adding that officers responded to more than 100 calls to 3000 Bar, as well as the area of 15th Avenue South and Demonbreun Street, since April 2021.

For example, on April 17, 2021, two people were shot around 2:15 a.m. in the 1500 block of Demonbreun Street, leaving one of them dead, according to authorities.

Then, on March 5, 2022, MNPD responded to a shots fired call at 1 a.m. outside of 3000 Bar. Witnesses said the incident started as an argument inside the business and spilled outside. 

A woman reportedly fired shots into the air and one of the gunshots struck and injured a person in a nearby apartment.

The Tennessee Alcoholic Beverage Commission (TABC) started conducting operations following another shooting at 3000 Bar on Dec. 31, 2022, officials said.

Those operations led to the suspension of the establishment’s liquor license on March 13 due to the failure to provide adequate security, failure to maintain law and order, and failure to timely seek license renewal, according to police.

The MNPD said its investigation from December showed the bar was using unlicensed persons as security personnel — at least one of whom is believed to be a convicted felon — and allowed them to carry weapons.

In addition, the bar’s security system showed patrons drinking alcohol while they openly possessed and/or displayed weapons, with “security” personnel also openly handling guns, authorities said.

The MNPD said its staff offered guidance about how to mitigate violence and other criminal activity during meetings held with owners and management staff from Demonbreun Street establishments, including representatives of 3000 Bar, at the Midtown Hills precinct in April 2021, August 2021, and March 2022.

However, even in 2023, numerous business owners and property managers around 3000 Bar have voiced their concerns about the establishment and the unlawful activities that continue to generate police responses, officials reported.

As the result of an investigation that lasted almost two years, law enforcement announced on Friday they determined the 3000 Bar “poses a hazard to patrons and the overall safety of the immediate vicinity.”

Just after 6:30 p.m., police said the following people are wanted on outstanding felony warrants in connection with the investigation and padlocking of 3000 Bar:

• Employee Christopher McGee, 26, is accused of providing false information to police during the investigation of a shooting that happened on Dec. 31, 2022.
• Employee Kareem Hearn, 41, is accused of providing false information to police during the same shooting investigation above. He is also charged with two counts of gun possession by a convicted felon.
• Armed security guard Kristoff Carter, 30, is accused of not having the required state license to be an armed security guard (impersonation of a licensed professional), and gun possession by a convicted felon.
• Armed security guard Phalan Jordan, 40, is accused of not having the required state license to be an armed security guard (impersonation of a licensed professional).
• Armed security guard Aaron Gilbert, 33, is accused of not having the required state license to be an armed security guard (impersonation of a licensed professional).
• Armed security guard Pharaoh Patton, 28, is accused of not having the required state license to be an armed security guard (impersonation of a licensed professional).