American singer Tito Jackson died at the premature age of 71. One of the brothers of Michael Jackson (†50), who was also one of the members of the Jackson 5 band, apparently suffered a heart attack in the car on Sunday while traveling from New Mexico to Oklahoma. The sad event was announced to ET by family friend and former Jackson family manager Steve Manning. However, the official cause of death has not yet been determined.
Tito Jackson performed with the family group The Jacksons, in which he worked with his brothers Jackie and Marlon, in Munich, Germany, last Monday. Tito is survived by three sons – Taj (41), Taryll (39) and TJ (46), who formed the successful band 3T at the turn of the millennium. The singer also had nine grandchildren.
“It is with heavy hearts that we announce that our beloved father, Rock and Roll Hall of Famer, Tito Jackson is no longer with us. We are shocked, saddened and heartbroken. Our father was an incredible man who cared about the well-being of all of us,” his sons shared in a moving statement.
The mother of the singer’s sons was Delores ‘Dee Dee’ Martes, whom Tito Jackson married in 1972, they divorced sixteen years later. In 1994, she was found dead in a swimming pool. At first her death was considered an accident, but her then-boyfriend Donald Bohana was later charged with her murder and subsequently found guilty of second-degree murder. After serving 24 years behind bars, he was paroled in December 2022.
