Norwood Resident and State Trooper Murder Key Witness Joseph A. Souza Shot Dead in East Boston-October 22, 1994

Key Prosecution Witness in State Trooper’s Murder Slain in East Boston

Joseph A. Souza, a 39-year-old Norwood resident with a 20-year criminal history, was shot and killed Thursday evening while standing at a pay phone in an East Boston parking lot near Bennington and Brooks streets. Struck seven times, Souza was pronounced dead about 40 minutes later at Massachusetts General Hospital.

The assassination sent immediate shockwaves through law enforcement circles. Just hours before the September murder of State Trooper Mark Charbonnier in Kingston, Souza had been with David Clark, the man accused of gunning down the trooper. Investigators revealed that Souza was slated to be a key prosecution witness against Clark, raising deep concerns among authorities that the defense might attempt to pin the trooper’s murder on the deceased felon. In a pre-trial hearing Friday, Clark’s defense attorney, Judith Lindahl, formally requested the district attorney’s office to produce evidence detailing Souza’s whereabouts during the 24 hours surrounding Charbonnier’s death, magnifying the critical importance of forensic blood testing on the murder weapon linked to Clark.

Two Decades of Organized Crime and “Habitual Criminal” Status

Born in Cambridge and living at 143 Arnold Road in Norwood—while also maintaining a residence with his girlfriend in Quincy—Souza amassed a sprawling criminal record under aliases such as Gregory Owens and David Adams. His underworld career spanned decades:

• Early Armed Robberies: Beginning at age 15 in 1975, Souza was convicted of a string of armed robberies, car thefts, and assault charges across Chelsea, Somerville, Woburn, and Boston.
• 1981 Brink’s Robbery: Seeking authorities following a $153,000 armed robbery of a Brink’s guard outside a Jamaica Plain bank in December 1980, Souza was eventually captured in San Diego six months later. Convicted of conspiracy and armed robbery in 1983, he served over a decade at the state prison in Walpole.
• Norwood Traffic Dispute: Following his release, Souza was arrested in November 1993 for drunken driving and convicted of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon in Dedham District Court in January 1994. At the time of his death, Norfolk County District Attorney William Delahunt was preparing to try Souza as a “habitual criminal” following an incident where he allegedly beat and shot a man over a traffic dispute in Norwood.

Reflecting on his violent life, one law enforcement source remarked, “I’ll tell you one thing—this guy is not in purgatory and he’s not in heaven. He went directly to hell.”

Gangland Speculation and Boston Underworld Power Struggles

Boston police and investigative sources speculated that Souza’s execution was tied to an ongoing bloody power struggle within Boston’s organized crime syndicates. Authorities linked the slaying to a broader wave of underworld violence in East Boston, Everett, and Revere, attributing the turf war to the imprisonment of crime boss Gennaro Angiulo and a subsequent decline in authority for his reputed successor, “Cadillac Frank” Salemme of Sharon. Sources indicated Souza had aligned himself with Salemme’s faction.

Boston Police Deputy Superintendent Purvis Ryans noted that investigators recovered a handgun and spent shell casings near the scene, though ballistic testing results were pending amid unverified reports that Souza himself was carrying a .45-caliber handgun and an extra ammunition clip. Souza is survived by his wife, two younger daughters, and a son born around the time of the 1981 Brink’s robbery, who reside at the family home in Norwood.

Archival Note: This article has been dynamically reconstructed from the original public record print archives of the Patriot Ledger