Brockton man's loved ones recount heartbreak of losing him on eve of murder trials

BROCKTON — Brockton boxer Kevin Walsh knew Greg "Flea" Grantsis as one of those friends you knew you could count on.

A photo on the wall at Joe Angelo's shows Flea jumping into King Kevin's arms after one of his victories on his way to becoming the undefeated junior lightweight champion of New England.

"He's been like an older brother to me," said Walsh, 10-0 with four knockouts. "He's just amazing. One of my best friends and always there for me and everyone else."

Greg Grantsis used to come to all of Walsh's fights.

Someone shot Grantsis to death on Nov. 9, 2021 in Brockton, following what the family says was a road rage incident.

Now Walsh attends every court hearing he can to support the Grantsis family as two separate murder cases play out.

Who was charged in Greg Grantsis' killing?

Prosecutors have brought first-degree murder charges against brothers Rula and Shamallah Jones. Rula Jones is scheduled to go on trial Oct. 24. Shamallah Jones' trial would follow in January 2024 if the current schedule holds. The Plymouth County District Attorney's office declined to comment on the cases in view of the trials starting soon.

Prosecutors originally charged both Jones brothers in one case, but lawyers for Shamallah Jones requested the cases be split and a judge approved it. Judging from defense attorney Joshua Wood's arguments in a recent motion to dismiss, Shamallah Jones will seek to prove his brother Rula Jones fired the shots. Prosecutor David Jay Cutshall said during the hearing that Shamallah Jones is liable for the crime even if he didn't pull the trigger.

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'Oil change and a fade'

Walsh remembers Greg as hysterically funny and a snappy dresser. Greg's work as a mechanic gave him "vise grips."

"He was wicked strong. You'd shake his hand and your hand would be hurting after a little while," said Walsh, which is something coming from a man who makes his living with his fists.

Greg Grantsis, 36 when he was killed, was the middle of five children in a close-knit Greek family: Nick, 43; Peter, 36; Stefanie, 34; and his "Irish twin" Ana, short for Anastasia. Greg Grantsis had two children, Kaylee and Gregory Jr.

Deana Grantsis, Greg's mother, said a lot of people didn't know he had eye cancer. He took special eye drops that cost $468 a month.

"He never complained," Deana Grantsis said. "He made everything so much better."

The family used to run Bill's Auto Repair. Greg Grantsis would cut people's hair in a barber's chair set in the middle bay of the garage. He used to call it, "Oil change and a fade."

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Not one murder trial, but two

Facing two separate murder trials has increased the stress on a Grantsis family already shattered by their loss. As of Sept. 26, the family had attended 31 hearings, sister Ana Grantsis said. Those include court sessions on accessory to murder charges against Ashley Severino of Boston. The commonwealth has also brought witness intimidation charges against Vanessa Jones, the mother of Rula and Shamallah Jones.

Ana Grantsis has already written a victim impact statement that she was going to read at the trial of Vanessa Jones before it was postponed. "Since that dreadful night of November 9th, I can't remember what happiness or joy or even a normal life was like," it reads in part. "Together as a whole, my family is broken down emotionally, spiritually, physically and psychologically."

'Bro, we good?'

In late September, the Grantsises and Walsh talked to the Enterprise at Joe Angelo's. That's the downtown bar and restaurant Greg Grantsis was last at before leaving in a Mazda 3 with two friends the night of Nov. 9, 2021.

The family said prosecutors asked them not to go into detail about the case.

In broad strokes, however, the family says that Greg Grantsis was driving north on Warren Avenue when one of the Jones brothers cut him off at Tremont Street. After a verbal dispute, Greg Grantsis wound up being shot in the face. Another passenger was also shot, but not fatally.

The city's electronic gunfire detection system, the ShotSpotter, alerted police to seven rounds of gunfire near 76 Tremont St. about 1:36 a.m. that night. Greg Grantsis was taken by ambulance to Signature Healthcare Brockton Hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 2:28 a.m., according to prosecutors.

Audio exists of the shootings. Ana Grantsis described it.

"You can hear my brother's voice as clear as day saying, 'We good, bro? Are we good bro?' Then all of a sudden the shots," she said. "That's a peacemaker right there. That's not a hostile statement."

What do police records say?

The family said Greg Grantsis had no enemies. His police record, however, is not spotless. Greg Grantsis had trouble with the law two decades ago when he was in his late teens and early twenties, according to court records. He was found guilty of possession of class A drugs and assault with a dangerous weapon. More recently, authorities charged him with assault and battery with a dangerous weapon in May 2015. That case has been closed. He also faced a drug charge and cash forfeiture stemming from an October 2015 traffic stop. But that charge was dismissed in 2017 and the $1,402 cash that was seized from him was returned.

The Jones brothers have both faced serious charges before their indictments on charges of killing Greg Grantsis. Rula Jones pleaded guilty to manslaughter in the stabbing death of 15-year-old Lance Hartgrove in Roxbury in 2012, when Rula Jones was 18. Plymouth County prosecutors charged Shamallah Jones with cocaine possession and gun violations in July 2019.

Motion to dismiss

Wood, the lawyer for Shamallah Jones, argued at a Sept. 15 court hearing that the case should be dismissed. His grounds? Wood says members of the grand jury that brought the indictment didn't hear from one witness who was in the Mazda with Grantsis.

But prosecutor David Jay Cutshall said that even without that witness's testimony, the commonwealth's case is strong enough to merit the indictment.

"There's more than enough evidence to sustain our burden that Shamallah Jones was present at the scene," the assistant district attorney said at the hearing.

Judge Gregg J. Pasquale is making up his mind and said he would rule before Shamallah Jones' trial begins. Even if he does toss the case, Wood is asking only that the indictments be dismissed "without prejudice." That's legalese for the commonwealth being able to regroup and indict again.

Ana Grantsis said her biggest fear is the men she believes killed her brother will get off on a technicality.

"It's such an injustice," Ana said. "I want closure. I don't want anyone else to go through what we went through."

Send your news tips to reporter Chris Helms by email at CHelms@enterprisenews.com or connect on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, at @HelmsNews.

This article originally appeared on The Enterprise: Greg Grantsis murder: Rula and Shamallah Jones trials begin