4 people arrested after fatal shooting of ‘General Hospital’ actor

Four people were arrested on Thursday in connection with the fatal shooting at General Hospital Actor Johnny Wactor earlier this year.

On Thursday, Los Angeles police announced that several suspects had been arrested in the investigation into Wactor's death. “These search warrants resulted in the arrest of four individuals and the seizure of evidence,” police said in a statement.

Wactor, 37, was shot “without provocation” in downtown Los Angeles around 3:25 a.m. on May 25 after working as a bartender at the Level 8 bar/restaurant, police said. As he walked to his car, he was attacked by three people who had raised the vehicle with a jack to allegedly steal the catalytic converter.

🚨 What we know about the arrests

The LAPD announced that three suspects were arrested on suspicion of murder: Robert Barceleau, 18; Leonel Guiterrez, 18; and Sergio Estrada, 18. Another man – Frank Olano, 22 – was taken into custody on suspicion of being an accessory to the crime.

On August 15, ABC News confirmed through multiple law enforcement sources that the LAPD executed search warrants in the murder of Wactor, who played Brando Corbin in General Hospital from 2020 to 2022. Suspects were expected to be arrested.

According to Los Angeles Times law enforcement sources, the investigation focused on members of the Florencia 13 gang, who have been linked to other catalytic converter thefts in the area.

The newspaper reported that a probable cause statement used to obtain the arrest warrants named Barceleau, Estrada and Gutierrez as suspects, and their fingerprints reportedly matched those of the car jack used to try to steal Wactor's catalytic converter.

An LAPD spokesperson has not yet responded to Yahoo's request for comment.

🔍 Arrests after family calls for help

On August 13, Wactor's family and friends held a press conference outside Los Angeles City Hall, publicly asking for help in the investigation.

“I'm asking anyone who knows anything to come forward,” his mother, Scarlett Wactor, said, according to the Associated Press. “It will help me and his brothers heal to know that they were captured and convicted.” She said that “grief is my constant companion” as they wait for a resolution.

“If they caught her, it would be a lot easier to get closure,” she told Extra.

Other attendees called on Mayor Karen Bass to take more action to combat crime in Los Angeles. In the month Wactor was shot, it was reported that the number of car thefts in the city had “skyrocketed.” Catalytic converters, which are part of a car's exhaust system and are essential for controlling emissions, are a popular target for thieves.

On August 4, police released images of suspects and asked the public for help in identifying them. One image showed a vehicle described as a stolen 2018 black Infiniti Q50 with a tan interior, while a second image showed three people outside the car. “Suspect 1,” who has tattoos above his left eye and on his right cheek, was described as the gunman who shot Wactor in the chest.

➡️ What happened the night of Wactor's murder?

Wactor's mother told Fox News Digital her son stayed late at work that night to clean the bar. As he and a co-worker walked to their cars, Wactor saw his car was jacked up and thought it was going to be towed. A suspect wearing a mask opened fire, hitting Wactor. The trio then fled in the Infiniti.

Colleague Anita Joy said it “happened in an instant.”

“Johnny remained calm as usual and simply said it was his car and they should go,” Joy wrote on Instagram. “His hands were peacefully open on either side. Johnny was standing between me and the man who shot him – when I heard the shot in the night, he violently rushed back into my arms and as I reached for him I shouted, 'Honey, are you OK?!' And he just replied, 'Nope! Shot!'”

Joy said a security guard from work ran toward them while on the phone with a 911 dispatcher. They tried to stop the bleeding with a denim jacket and performed CPR, she added. Wactor was later pronounced dead at a local hospital.