Three of the four men arrested for the alleged murder of “General Hospital” actor Johnny Wactor have been previously arrested and released, and Wactor’s best friend says their cases are the result of Los Angeles District Attorney George Gascón’s policies.
On Thursday, the Los Angeles Police Department announced that it had arrested four men – all members of the Florencia 13 gang – in connection to the murder of Wactor on May 25. The four suspects are: Robert Barceleau, 18, of Huntington Park; Leonel Gutierrez, 18, of Los Angeles County; Sergio Estrada, 18, of Los Angeles County; and Frank Olano, 22, of Inglewood.
Micah Parker, Wactor’s best friend, blames the death of his friend on the men believed to be involved and on L.A. District Attorney George Gascón’s soft-on-crime policies.
“This has become a very pro-criminal city, straight up.” Parker told The Daily Wire in an interview. “Everything has to be ‘oh, well, what’s the background, what’s their life like?’ But no, it should be, ‘you break the law, you pay the price,’ and with George Gascón’s policies, it’s very much gotten away from that.”
The men arrested for murdering General Hospital star Johnny Wactor had all already been arrested in Los Angeles — but were released under liberal DA George Gascón. @AsheSchow just interviewed Wactor’s best friend, who says LA has turned into a “pro-criminal city” pic.twitter.com/1K8Lw6GFU5
— Daily Wire (@realDailyWire) August 16, 2024
Barceleau, Gutierrez, and Estrada – the three 18-year-olds – were arrested on suspicion of murder, while 22-year-old Olano is believed to be an accessory. All four are being held in lieu of a $2 million bond.
Inmate records reviewed by The Daily Wire show that Barceleau, Gutierrez, and Olano all have previous arrests, with Olano having a previous conviction. Barceleau and Gutierrez were both arrested and released after Wactor’s murder, CBS News reported.
The fact that these men had been arrested and released – some prior to Wactor’s murder – didn’t sit well with Parker.
“It’s infuriating,” Parker said. “[Olano] was arrested before the murder, imagine if [he] had stayed in jail, maybe none of this would have happened. And they had them in custody – one of them, 11 days after the murder – and yet, they were released on bond. After an assault with a deadly weapon charge.”
Eleven days after Wactor was murdered, Barceleau was arrested for an assault with a deadly weapon. He was also arrested in July for an undisclosed misdemeanor. He received a citation for the misdemeanor and was released on $125,000 bail for the assault with a deadly weapon charge.
Gutierrez was arrested for felony vandalism on July 19, nearly a month before he was arrested for Wactor’s murder. The reason given for his release was that he was a juvenile, even though he is 18.
Frank Olano had been arrested twice before Wactor’s murder, once in 2022 for a felony, and again in 2023 for two more charges, including another felony, for which he spent a few days in jail. Olano received probation for felony vandalism during Wactor’s murder, CBS reported.
Gascón survived a recall election but faces a hard-fought re-election bid against challenger Nathan Hochman.
