NEARBY: Jammed Gun Likely Saved Lives During Drug Probe Shooting, DA Says

A large investigation into an alleged multi-million-dollar drug trafficking ring led to the arrest of three men and the seizure of $4 million in drugs after a suspect opened fire on law enforcement during a raid, officials said Tuesday.

Bucks County District Attorney Joe Khan announced that Nicholas Sperando, 26, is being held without bail following the Jan. 15 shooting in Philadelphia. Sperando is charged with multiple offenses, including two counts each of attempted murder and attempted murder of a law enforcement officer.

The shooting happened as a task force led by Bucks County Detectives and Bensalem Township police executed a search warrant at a residence on Fairdale Road in Philadelphia.

As police breached the door with a ram, a shot was fired from inside, Khan said.

According to investigators, a second round was fired through the door less than a minute later and shooting toward the area where special agents with the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office and Pennsylvania State Police troopers, along with members of the Bucks County Detectives, Bensalem Township Police Department, and Philadelphia Police Department, had been standing.

Deputy District Attorney Christopher Rees noted that officers were in gear that said they were police and had loudly announced law enforcement was at the door.

No officers were injured, and they did not return fire, and Sperando eventually surrendered through the garage of the home, Rees told reporters.

“This cowardly act against our officers was an attack on the rule of law,” Khan said. “Our office will always protect those who risk their lives to protect us, even when that happens across county lines.”

Inside the home, investigators recovered an FN Herstal 5.7 pistol believed to be the weapon used in the shooting.

Police said a live round jammed in the chamber likely prevented Sperando from firing additional shots at law enforcement.

An rifle and a Glock handgun with an extended magazine were also seized at the scene, Khan said.

The raid was the result of a monthslong investigation involving local, state, and federal agencies, according to investigators and prosecutors.

Authorities said the alleged drug organization moved large quantities of drugs through the region. Police drug buys took place in Levittown and Northeast Philadelphia.

In total, the operation netted eight firearms and a haul of drugs that included 300 pounds of marijuana, 17,000 THC vapes, and quantities of cocaine, psilocybin mushrooms, and Adderall, the district attorney’s office said in a statement.

David Tierney was apprehended at a “stash house” on Day Street in Philadelphia and he allegedly attempted to flush cocaine and pills down a toilet as officers arrived. He is being held on $250,000 bail, authorities said.

Nicholas Keenoy surrendered to authorities on Jan. 27. Keenoy had been previously arrested in New Jersey on an outstanding warrant but was released after posting cash bail in that jurisdiction before his extradition to Pennsylvania, authorities said.

Bensalem Public Safety Director William McVey credited the training of the officers for the fact that no one was killed.

“The suspects in this case posed a significant threat to officers, but also the innocent civilians they came in contact with every day,” McVey said.

While the shooting occurred in Philadelphia, the Bucks County District Attorney’s Office assumed jurisdiction over the case in cooperation with the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office.

The investigation was led by the Bucks County Detectives Drug Strike Force and the Bensalem Township Police Department, with assistance from the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office Bureau of Narcotics Investigations, the FBI, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Homeland Security Investigations, the Philadelphia Police Department, Pennsylvania State Police, the Bristol Township Police Department, Liberty Mid-Atlantic High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA), Mount Laurel (New Jersey) Police Department, and the Burlington County (New Jersey) Prosecutor’s Office.

Editor’s Note: All individuals arrested or charged with a crime are presumed innocent until proven guilty. The story was compiled using information from police and public court documents.