TRAGIC TURN General Hospital star Johnny Wactor’s murder suspects plead not guilty as they face life in prison after shooting death
General Hospital star Johnny Wactor’s murder suspects plead not guilty as they face life in prison after shooting death
THREE suspects accused in the shooting death of General Hospital actor Johnny Wactor have pleaded not guilty to murder charges.
Robert Isaiah Barceleau, 18, the alleged gunman had his no-guilty plea entered on his behalf.
If convicted, he faces a potential life sentence without the possibility of parole.
Sergio Estrada,18, and Frank Olano, 22, also pleaded not guilty on Thursday.
Estrada was charged with murder, attempted robbery, and grand theft.
Meanwhile, Olano has been charged with being an accessory after the fact of the killing, receiving stolen property, and three counts of being a felon in possession of a firearm.
All three were arraigned before Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Susan De Witt.
Another suspect, Leonel Gutierrez, 18, was charged with attempted robbery and grand theft by embezzlement, however, he pleaded guilty through his attorney.
Gutierrez was released after posting a $120,000 bond
A preliminary hearing date was set for October 16 for Barceleau, Estrada, and Olano.
Johnny Wactor was shot and killed in Los Angeles on May 25, 2024, as he was leaving his bartending job early in the morning.
Wactor walked to his car with a co-worker a few blocks away from the bar when he noticed three men messing with it.
The men had raised Wactor’s car with a floor jack in an attempt to steal his catalytic convertor.
Wactor didn’t try to confront the men but he was shot by one of the masked assailants – believed to be Barceleau – before the group took off.
The actor, who appeared in 200 episodes of General Hospital, was taken to a local hospital where he was pronounced dead.
His co-worker shared the heartbreaking moment as she watched him die in her arms.
SUSPECTS ARRESTED
The four men charged in Wactor’s killing were arrested on August 15 after police served search warrants earlier that morning.
The Los Angeles Police Department found fingerprints at the scene where Wactor was shot, using the evidence to identify the men.
Wactor’s Career
The actor from Charleston, South Carolina, starred in General Hospital between 2020 and 2022.
His first appearance on the show was on January 30, 2020, as Brando Corbin, but he was written out two years later after his character was stabbed by an unknown killer.
However, before playing Corbin, Wactor started his acting career in 2007 by starring in Army Wives.
He also featured in NCIS, Criminal Minds, Station 19, The OA, and West World.
In 2016, he landed a movie role in USS Indianapolis: Men Of Courage, starring Nicolas Cage.
Wactor is set to feature in a new movie by Luca Perito called American Sognare, which is currently in post-production, according to IMDb.
“Early this morning, the Los Angeles Police Department’s Central Bureau Homicide conducted search warrants relating to the John Wactor case at several locations throughout Los Angeles,” read a statement from the LAPD at the time.
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“These warrants resulted in four people being arrested and evidence recovered.”
The arrests came after TMZ reported that members of the Florencia 13 gang were connected to the murder.
