Current:Home > MarketsGeneral Hospital Actor Johnny Wactor's Death: Authorities Arrest 4 People in Connection to Fatal Shooting -Elevate Capital Network
General Hospital Actor Johnny Wactor's Death: Authorities Arrest 4 People in Connection to Fatal Shooting
View
Date:2025-04-12 07:56:36
Authorities have made multiple arrests in connection to the shooting death of Johnny Wactor.
The Los Angeles Police Department took four people into custody Aug. 15 as part of the investigation into the General Hospital actor’s homicide, according to a news release.
Robert Barceleau, 18, Leonel Gutierrez, 18, and Sergio Estrada, 18, were booked on arrest warrants for murder, while 22-year-old Frank Olano was booked on a warrant for accessory after the fact, per police.
E! News was unable to determine if the four had obtained lawyers to speak on their behalf.
Wactor was shot and killed May 25 in downtown L.A. after discovering thieves tampering with a car, his mother told NBC Los Angeles at the time.
Officers responded to a report of a shooting at 3:25 a.m. to find Wactor suffering from an apparent gunshot wound, per an LAPD press release. The soap star was taken to a local hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
"Based on witness statements, Wactor had ended his shift as a bartender at a local bar and walked to his vehicle," read a May 28 press release from the LAPD. "When Wactor arrived at his vehicle, he was confronted by three individuals who had Wactor’s vehicle raised up with a floor jack and were in the process of stealing the catalytic converter. Without provocation, the victim was shot by one of the individuals."
Police said the three suspects fled the scene in a dark sedan.
Wactor’s coworker Anita Joy later detailed the 37-year-old’s heroic final moments in the wake of his death, sharing that they were leaving the bar together when they came across the men.
"We cautiously approached the men, questioning what they were doing, at first thinking the car was being towed," she wrote on Instagram on May 29. "We were no threat and Johnny kept his cool as he always did, simply stating that it was his car and for them to leave. Hands open to his sides in peace."
Wactor stood in front of her to shield her from the perpetrators, but in an "instant" she said they were attacked.
"As I heard the shot ring into the night, he forcefully tumbled back into my arms," she recalled. "As I grabbed for him, I shouted 'Hunny you ok?!' And he only responded, 'Nope! Shot!' We toppled onto the street where I pushed my legs under him and tried to hold his body up while screaming for help and screaming at him to stay with me."
Joy said she watched her friend of eight years die in her arms, adding she’s “utterly heartbroken and so very angry” over his passing.
"My only peace is that I was with him and this didn't happen to him alone,” she wrote. “My only other peace will be seeing these awful men brought to justice."
Read on to look back on his life in photos.
For the latest breaking news updates, click here to download the E! News AppveryGood! (56)
Related
- British swimmer Adam Peaty: There are worms in the food at Paris Olympic Village
- Have you invested in crypto on FTX or other platforms? We want to hear from you
- Batman is dead and four new heroes can't quite replace him in 'Gotham Knights'
- Karaoke night is coming to Apple Music, the company says
- Blake Lively’s Inner Circle Shares Rare Insight on Her Life as a Mom to 4 Kids
- Autopsies on corpses linked to Kenya starvation cult reveal missing organs; 133 confirmed dead
- How Silicon Valley fervor explains Elizabeth Holmes' 11-year prison sentence
- Kourtney Kardashian Reveals the Secrets Behind Her Guns N' Roses-Inspired Wedding Dress
- 3 years after the NFL added a 17th game, the push for an 18th gets stronger
- Ulta 24-Hour Flash Sale: Take 50% Off Origins, Live Tinted, Foreo, Jaclyn Cosmetics, and More
Ranking
- 'No Good Deed': Who's the killer in the Netflix comedy? And will there be a Season 2?
- Why some Egyptians are fuming over Netflix's Black Cleopatra
- Ulta 24-Hour Flash Sale: Take 50% Off Origins, Live Tinted, Foreo, Jaclyn Cosmetics, and More
- France launches war crime investigation after reporter Arman Soldin killed in Ukraine
- Google unveils a quantum chip. Could it help unlock the universe's deepest secrets?
- Facebook's parent is fined nearly $25M for violating a campaign finance disclosure law
- Twitter begins advertising a paid verification plan for $8 per month
- 22 Rave Mom Essentials From Amazon To Pack For Festival Season
Recommendation
Bodycam footage shows high
Autopsies on corpses linked to Kenya starvation cult reveal missing organs; 133 confirmed dead
Hubble's 1995 image of a star nursery was amazing. Take a look at NASA's new version
San Francisco supervisors bar police robots from using deadly force for now
Michigan lawmaker who was arrested in June loses reelection bid in Republican primary
We Ranked All of Reese Witherspoon's Rom-Coms—What, Like It's Hard?
At least 22 people, including children, killed in India boat accident
Arrest of ex-Pakistan leader Imran Khan hurls country into deadly political chaos