Johnny Wactor murder update: Cops to arrest gang members for General Hospital star’s shooting death
Police have executed search warrants and made multiple arrests in connection with the shooting death of General Hospital star Johnny Wactor.
The 37-year-old actor is believed to have been shot dead in downtown Los Angeles on May 25 by thieves attempting to steal the catalytic converter from his car.
Los Angeles police have now identified members of the Florencia 13 gang in connection with his murder outside Level 8, where he worked, according to TMZ.
According to the news agency, fingerprints found at the crime scene could help link suspects to the case.
After his death, Wactor’s remains were taken to his home state of South Carolina, where he was cremated. His ashes now lie with his mother, Scarlett, at her home.
Johnny Wactor is believed to have been shot and killed on May 25 by thieves attempting to steal the catalytic converter from his vehicle in downtown Los Angeles
Exclusive photos from DailyMail.com also show the deserted spot where the star lost his life, with a torn piece of police tape still hanging on a heavily graffitied shop front nearby
On Saturday, May 25, at approximately 3:25 a.m., Wactor left his after-hours job at Downtown LA’s Sinners y Santos nightclub, a cathedral-like club, with his co-worker Anita Joy.
He saw three men, all wearing masks, standing near his vehicle, which was on a jack. The star thought the car was being towed and as he approached the assailants, one of them pointed a gun at the actor.
Wactor was taken to a hospital by paramedics, where he was pronounced dead shortly after. Police said the three men quickly fled the scene in another vehicle.
Family members previously told DailyMail.com that the “southern gentleman” escorted Joy to her car and shielded her with his body when the three thieves opened fire.
In a series of Instagram posts reflecting on his heroic final moments, Joy called Wactor her friend of “eight years” and described how he “fought to stay alive” before dying in her arms.
“It all happened in the blink of an eye,” Joy wrote. “I describe it as a glass of water tipping over and you’re trying to grab it and stop it from falling out, but it just flows through your fingertips and is gone.”
‘Johnny was standing between me and the man who shot him. When I heard the shot in the night, he fell back into my arms with force. As I grabbed him, I shouted, “Baby, are you okay?!”
‘And he just said, “No! Shot!” We fell to the street, where I pushed my legs under him and tried to hold his body up while I screamed for help and shouted at him to stay with me.’
Joy said a bouncer from the bar where they worked ran over to her and performed CPR, but it was too late.
“It was too close, too extreme injury to survive. But my God, he fought to stay,” she wrote.
Joy also revealed that staff at the Downtown LA nightclub complained about the lack of safe parking for night workers, following a series of violent crimes in the area.
Johnny Wactor’s cause of death has been revealed after the actor was shot dead by thieves attempting to steal the catalytic converter from his vehicle in Downtown Los Angeles on Saturday, May 25
Wactor has struggled to find acting work in recent years, with a source telling DailyMail.com that he tried to make ends meet by working at the club
Several actor friends have also praised Wactor’s “selflessness” and noble character, revealing how he took a job as a bartender at the new nightclub Sinners y Santos after struggling to find roles following the strike.
Despite his alcohol problem, the actor had taken on a job as a bartender to make ends meet at the nightclub, which was just a few blocks from where he was shot.