James Handy, the actor known for roles in films such as Top Gun: Maverick and Jumanji, was stabbed to death in the front yard of his home in Los Angeles on Wednesday, police said. He was 81.
Police identified the suspect as Handy’s girlfriend’s son, Michael Gledhill, who lives at the home with his mother.
The Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) said in a statement they received a 911 call in which a caller said: “I am the son of man, I just killed the man of sin.”
When officers responded to the scene, Gledhill approached them and said “he was the one they were looking for”.
Gledhill, 44, was arrested and booked at the Van Nuys jail on suspicion of murder. His bail was set at $2m, according to jail records.
LAPD officers from its West Valley division responded to a 911 call indicating “unknown trouble” at a property in Tarzana, in San Fernando Valley, at around 9.30am local time on Wednesday.
On arriving at the scene, they found Handy unconscious in the front yard with a stab wound to his chest. He was taken to a local hospital where he was pronounced dead.
It was not immediately clear if he had an attorney. Jail records did not show an attorney for him and messages left with the county public defender’s office were not immediately returned.
Investigators said they believed the stabbing was “an isolated incident” and that there was “no danger to the public at this time”.
No motive for the stabbing was disclosed and police requested anyone with additional information about the incident to get in touch with them.
Handy’s agent, Pam Ellis-Evenas, confirmed his death to The Independent: “With great sadness I can confirm that the gentleman who was attacked and killed on Wednesday in Tarzana was the actor James Handy.”
She added: “I could not have asked for a more talented, humble or gracious client and friend than James Handy.”
Handy worked across film and television for nearly 50 years, accumulating more than 150 screen credits.
Born in New York City, he made his screen debut in 1977 in the ABC daytime drama Ryan’s Hope.
He later appeared in TV series such as NYPD Blue, Alias, Law & Order, Criminal Minds, ER, The X-Files, Beverly Hills, 90210, Melrose Place, and 9-1-1.
His film credits included The Verdict, Arachnophobia, The Rocketeer, Point of No Return, Unbreakable, and Logan.
In Top Gun: Maverick, released in 2022, Handy played the bartender Jimmy alongside Jennifer Connelly.
In the 1995 fantasy film Jumanji, starring Robin Williams, he appeared as an exterminator.
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