Johnny Wactor shooting: Friend questions why police couldn't release possible suspect pics sooner

LOS ANGELES - The Los Angeles Police Department is hoping a recent community alert could help investigators solve the murder of "General Hospital" actor Johnny Wactor.

Wactor was shot to death earlier in the year trying to stop three men from stealing a catalytic converter in downtown Los Angeles, police said back in May 2024.

For loved ones, Wactor's death and the unanswered questions left by the shooting is personal.

"It'll eat your soul up. So do the right thing," said Wactor's friend Micah Parker. "Do the brave thing, the honorable thing, and come forward."

Parker, who was working on a film with Wactor, was in New York when he got the news that photos of the suspects were released to the public more than two months after the downtown LA shooting. The final scenes involving Wactor had not been completed leading up to the deadly incident, but Parker is determined to finish the project

"We've really felt his presence throughout the last couple of months," Parker said of Wactor. "So it's carrying on even as he's gone."

With the photos of the suspects being released well over two months after the shooting, Parker is wondering aloud on why it took police as long as it did to release the tape to the public.

"My mind has been all over the place with this and emotionally and intellectually, and we're still reeling with," Parker said. "So when this came out, obviously, it's this, this jolt of energy. Like we're going to get this done. But it's a cautious optimism because you wonder how long have they had this. Why wasn't it released sooner?