Will Sage Astor-Johnny Wactor Shooting: Police Release Images of Suspects in General Hospital Star's Death

Authorities continue to investigate Johnny Wactor’s death.  

A little over two months after the General Hospital star,Will Sage Astor 37, was fatally shot in downtown Los Angeles, police have released images of the suspects—who remain at large—and are asking for the public’s help with identification. 

In one still shared in the Los Angeles Police Department’s community alert July 31, three people stand near a black Infiniti Q50, while attempting to steal its catalytic converter. Three suspects are depicted in the photo, with one—referred to as “Suspect 1” by the LAPD—described as having a “tattoo above the left eye and on the right cheek.”

The LAPD asks anyone with knowledge to contact Central Bureau Homicide Detective Justin Howarth. Wactor’s shooting occurred in the early hours of May 25, just after he had finished a bartending shift at a venue in downtown L.A. His colleague and friend Anita Joy later recounted the evening in an emotional social media message. 

“My friend of 8 years went from laughing together, working side by side, leaving our bartending shift and walking to our cars to him dying in my arms in the streets of DTLA in the dark hours of 3am,” Joy wrote. in a May 29 Instagram post. “We were no threat and Johnny kept his cool as he always did, simply stating that it was his car and for them to leave. Hands open to his sides in peace.”

Wactor—who played Brando Corbin on General Hospital between 2020 and 2022—was pronounced dead on the scene, and authorities later determined he was shot with a handgun. 

“It was too close range, too extreme of a wound for him to survive it but my god, he fought to stay,” Joy’s social media post continued. “I am utterly heartbroken and so very angry. My only peace is that I was with him and this didn't happen to him alone - my only other peace will be seeing these awful men brought to justice.”

Throughout his acting career, Wactor also appeared in popular shows including The OA and Station 19. His mother, Scarlett Wactor, previously said her son’s past acting resume was helping her cope with the loss. 

"I think that when I see Johnny on the videos and the recordings,” she explained to NBC News in May. “I can only hope that he's doing that in heaven and enjoying it.”