On a late Saturday night in Dorchester, Massachusetts, 67-year-old Jose Luis Phinn Williams was working his shift at the Fabian gas station on Washington Street. It was October 6, 2018, just two days before he would have celebrated his 68th birthday. Tragically, he would not see that day. During an attempted robbery at the gas station, Mr. Williams was shot and killed.
The news of his death sent ripples of grief through the community that knew him as a kind and loving man.
Originally from Puerto Cortes, Honduras, he was remembered as a "great father" to his two adult sons. A makeshift memorial of flowers and candles soon grew outside the gas station where he had worked, a testament to the lives he had touched. His family and friends mourned the loss of a man they described as a "great person" who was very loving with his family.
The investigation into the murder of Jose Luis Phinn Williams saw a number of turns. Shortly after the shooting, police arrested 21-year-old Kevin Williams, who matched an eyewitness description. However, after spending five weeks in jail, the charges against him were dropped due to insufficient evidence. The case remained a priority for law enforcement, and in April 2019, a new suspect was taken into custody.
Police arrested 26-year-old Gregory Simmons of Dorchester, charging him with murder, attempted armed robbery while masked, and unlawful possession of a firearm. Prosecutors alleged that Simmons acted as the getaway driver for a masked gunman who remains known to the authorities. While not the one who pulled the trigger, prosecutors stated that Simmons "acted in the same capacity" as the murderer. Simmons was also reportedly facing charges for other armed robberies in the area.
