Thomas Breen photo
Greg Perez, Jr., at mic: "He always loved his family."
A dispute at a Carmel Street tattoo party saw a 27-year-old New Havener allegedly shoot and kill 45-year-old Gregory Perez — before wracking up a handful of other warrants and fleeing to Boston, where city cops ultimately found him a year later and arrested him for murder.
Contributed photo
The late Gregory Perez (center).
Police Chief Karl Jacobson and Asst. Chief David Zannelli described that homicide arrest during a Wednesday afternoon press conference held on the third floor of 1 Union Ave.
The arrest stems from the Jan. 5, 2024, fatal shooting of Perez, who police said was hosting a tattoo party at his Carmel Street home at the time.
Jacobson and Zannelli said that the man whom police believe pulled the trigger was there to get a tattoo. They said that the 27-year-old, who is now 29, wound up shooting and killing Perez.
Det. Jessica Stone led the investigation. Jacobson said that she wound up traveling to Boston to look for the suspect, as that’s where his girlfriend was. After a full weekend’s worth of searching, Stone found him in Roxbury and arrested him.
Police have said that the suspect has been charged with murder and carrying a pistol without a permit, and is currently being held on a $1 million bond. Stone secured an arrest warrant for these charges on May 2.
This same suspect is also already detained on a number of other charges, Zannelli said, including those related to a 2021 nonfatal shooting in New Haven that Stone was also the lead investigator on.
More than a dozen of Perez’s family members attended Wednesday’s press conference. They wore black shirts showing Perez’s face and the message, “In Loving Memory of Gregory A. Perez Sr. 05/04/1978 – 01/05/2025.” A slideshow of pictures of Perez with family and friends played on a monitor hanging on the wall behind them.
“Happy birthday to my dad,” Perez’s eldest daughter, Adrianna Perez, said through tears as she reflected on how her father would have turned 47 last Sunday.
Perez’s son, Greg Jr., and Adrianna spoke about how their dad had been turning his life around when his life was so abruptly cut short.
“Emotionally, he was an amazing guy. He always loved his family,” Greg Jr. said. “He always proved he was there for us.”
“No one understands unless you’ve been through this,” Perez’s cousin Ashley Rivera said, her tears visible beneath her sunglasses. “It’s not right at all. We should have celebrated his birthday” this week. Instead, they’re continuing to mourn his absence.
Perez’s family members thanked police for making an arrest of the man they believe killed their loved one.
“Just put down the guns,” Perez said in her closing plea to the public. “I witnessed it [the homicide]. He was trying to be so peaceful. He should be here right now.”
Cousin Ashley Rivera (in sunglasses) and daughter Adrianna Perez (center).
Thomas Breen photo
Chief Jacobson. Asst. Chief Zannell, and lead Det. Stone.