Johnny Wactor Jesse Grant/Getty Images for Curious Potato
Johnny Wactor’s mom, Scarlett Wactor, is sharing more details about her son’s tragic death.
“When the person looked up he had on a mask, like a bandana,” Scarlett exclusively told Us Weekly on Wednesday, May 29. “When he saw that he immediately knew something was wrong and that’s when he stepped in front of his coworker.”
Scarlett previously shared on Sunday, May 26, that Johnny was killed in Los Angeles. The General Hospital alum was shot after he and his coworker spotted three men attempting to steal his catalytic converter. Us confirmed on Wednesday that Johnny’s cause of death was homicide, per a coroner’s report. He was 37.
While speaking to Us, Scarlett shared that following Johnny’s death, she was able to get in touch with her late son’s coworker who was walking with him when he was shot. According to his mom, Johnny thought his car was initially getting towed and that was why he approached the vehicle.
“The car was jacked to one side, angled near his car and one person was down low. That’s why he said, ‘Hey, man, you towing my car?’ He was not angry from what I believe,” she explained. “He put his hands up and backed up or both and they shot him.”
Scarlett said that the “screams” caught the attention of a security guard who worked at the bar while he was walking to his car. When the security guard got to the scene he called 911 and an ambulance arrived two to three minutes later.
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According to Scarlett, Johnny’s coworker “seemed to be doing ok” after the incident: “[She] was very gracious in speaking with me so I could ask questions,” Scarlett said. “She felt detectives were being very thorough and that made me feel comforted.”
“I’m glad he was not alone,” she added.
Scarlett added she spoke to L.A. City Councilman Kevin de Leon, who has pushed for detectives to use overtime pay to solve the case.
Scarlett said although police are making progress in the investigation, it will take time.
“I asked police if they have any leads and they said they have a few, but it’s a process. That’s what he kept reminding me,” she said, noting there are cameras surrounding the crime scene which will hopefully aid detectives in their search.
Scarlett believes that Johnny “would have given [the assailants] the car” and that they “took a wonderful person for no reason.”
“If you read and see the outpouring of love, Johnny was such a bright light for anyone and everyone and he offered to help anyone,” she added.
Adding to the family’s grief, just months before Johnny’s death, Scarlett’s three sons also lost their father.
Months before Johnny’s death, the Wactor family lost their patriarch. Losing two members of their family in recent months has taken a toll on Scarlett and her additional sons.
“It’s been hard to watch my boys suffer again,” she said. “They were supposed to grow old together and bury me.”
“Everything is in god’s hands and I will see my son again,” she added. “I want justice. I don’t want it to be a cold case.”
With reporting by Andrea Simpson