‘General Hospital’ star Johnny Wactor killed in Los Angeles: ‘They took a great human being,’ mother says
"General Hospital" alum Johnny Wactor was shot and killed in downtown Los Angeles early Saturday morning, Fox News Digital has learned.
His mother, Scarlett Wactor, spoke with Fox News Digital on the phone and confirmed the news.
According to her, he and a co-worker were asked to stay late at a rooftop bar where he was bartending to clean and were returning to their cars around 3 or 3:30 a.m.
"They were walking to their car, and when they get there, Johnny’s car, which was parked in front of the co-worker’s, looked like it was jacked to one side, and from what I understand, he said, ‘Hey, man, you towing my car?’ … And the person looked up and had a mask, and so then I guess he knew they weren’t doing that, and so he stepped in front of the co-worker and then backed up and put his hands up or both, and the person shot him," Scarlett said.
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She noted that the place of employment did not have designated parking for employees.
"In my thought process … if he’d been two minutes earlier or two minutes later, he’d be alive."
Per TMZ, which first reported the news, authorities have not confirmed Wactor's identity, but the incident does match a reported case of three suspects trying to steal a catalytic converter. Descriptions of the suspects have not been released.
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Wactor got his start on television in the series "Army Wives" before appearing in other shows like "Animal Kingdom," "Criminal Minds" and "Westworld."
On "General Hospital," he played Brando Corbin for 164 episodes from 2020 to 2022.
His most recent credit is in the horror anthology film "Dead Talk Tales: Volume I."
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Wactor’s mother said authorities are planning an autopsy, and the family will bring him back to South Carolina for funeral services when his body is released.
"What I’d like for everybody to know is that they took a great human being. It is leaving a very large hole in me and his brother’s lives. We just buried my husband, their dad, four years ago. And he was very loved by his friends, his families. He lived life to the fullest, he chased his dreams, a very optimistic, positive person," Scarlett Wactor said of her son.
She continued, "And the crazy thing is, he wasn’t trying to stop them from taking it. They could have just left or taken it, he probably would have just given them the car. They were very much a coward[ly] person … I hope they catch them, and I hope there’s justice for Johnny. That’s all I can hope and pray for. I will see him again. But down here on Earth, it’s going to be a very, very long road without him for me and his brothers."
Wactor is survived by Scarlett and brothers Lance and Grant.