Tito Jackson's Most Tragic Secrets: How Jackson 5 Star Died 'Haunted' By Ghost of Brother Michael — and His Ex-Wife's Horrific Drowning
Tito Jackson was tormented by both the drugs death of his brother Michael and the drowning of his childhood sweetheart ex-wife.
Sept. 16 2024, Published 1:58 p.m. ET
Renowned as the silent "glue" of the Jackson 5, Tito Jackson's quiet nature hid a host of inner demons and personal torment.
The 70-year-old singer was killed at the weekend after suffering a suspected severe heart attack while driving – and RadarOnline.com can now reveal his most tragic secrets.
Jackson always felt Michael's presence when he was performing on stage after his death.
Jackson spent his life first in the shadows of his Jackson 5 siblings – and was then left haunted forever by the drugs overdose death of his controversial brother Michael Jackson aged 50 in 2009.
He died convinced he could feel the Bad star’s spirit.
But it wasn't the only death that haunted him.
He was also tormented by the drowning death of his ex-wife Dee Martes – which he and his children always refused to believe was an accident and successfully pleaded with cops to launch a murder probe into the case.
Just four days before his death on Sunday September 15, while driving to Oklahoma from New Mexico, the Jackson 5 founding member and took to Instagram to honour Michael.
Michael was killed aged 50 in 2009 by a massive dose of hospital tranquilizer propofol.
Alongside an image of a memorial for Michael in Munich, Germany, Jackson captioned the photo: "Before our show in Munich, my brothers Jackie, Marlon, and I visited the beautiful memorial dedicated to our beloved Michael Jackson.
"We're deeply grateful for this special place that honors not only his memory but also our shared legacy. Thank you for keeping his spirit alive."
The singer had recently been in Munich ahead of a performance by The Jacksons' current line-up, which also features brothers Jackie and Marlon Jackson.
His moving last Instagram post came after years of Jackson feeling like he was being haunted by his famous brother's ghost.
He said in August about Michael’s death: "The world was not kind to Michael at all. I don't know why.
"I would always say if we didn’t have him, we sure would miss him. His death was such a major tragedy.
"The world definitely missed out on a lot of goodness from him, because he wasn’t just a musician or an artist, he was a loving person. He loved to give."
Jackson spent years caring for his tragic brother's kids, including daughter Paris.
Jackson added about feeling Michael's presence on stage every time he played with his Jackson 5 siblings: "We always feel his presence on the stage. So that helps us a lot too.
"I can imagine Michael probably would have had three or four more hits by now, and they’d still be talking about him on the radio."
His brother's drugs death was far from Jackson’s only pain.
Born in Gary, Indiana, the third child of Joe and Katherine Jackson started playing guitar at the age of 10 – and was tormented by his dad once he and his brothers formed the Jackson 5.
He once said: "None of us can remember him holding us or cuddling us or telling us 'I love you'."
Instead, Joe whipped them when they didn’t carry out his orders to the letter as part of a brutal discipline regime that allegedly also involved making the young Michael Jackson stand on a hot stove with bare feet to improve his dancing.
But perhaps his greatest heartache was over his wife's death.
Jackson with his childhood sweetheart wife Dee Dee, who he believed was murdered.
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The same year Michael kicked off his solo career, Jackson was the first of the brothers to marry when he got hitched to with Delores ‘Dee Dee’ Martes when he was 18 and she was 17.
They were childhood sweethearts who had sons TJ, Taryll, and Taj – who went on to form singing group 3T.
But they divorced in 1988, and by 1994, Dee Dee, then 39, was into a relationship with 59-year-old businessman Donald Bohana.
In August that year, Jackson and his children were left reeling by the news his ex – who couldn't swim – had drowned in Bohana's swimming pool.
Jackson recalled about the moment he got the news: "My sons said, 'Mom is dead'. It was just a sad moment, you know. It was just horrifying."
Dee Dee's businessman Donald Bohana was eventually convicted of second-degree murder after she was found dead in his swimming pool.
Cops ruled the death an accident, but Jackson later said: "My first question was, 'Drown? What was she doing in the water?' You know, ’cause Dee Dee and I, neither of us swam."
He added she had "bruises" and "damage" on her body, with Jackson declaring: "It points to a murder to me, in the first degree."
Bohana insisted Dee Dee was comfortable swimming in his pool and said she had bruises when he tried to pull her from the pool.
Jackson and his kids' campaigning eventually forced cops to reopen the case and Bohana was charged with second-degree murder in 1998.
During his trial, a then 14-year-old Kim Kardashian was called as a witness as she had been dating Jackson's son TJ and was close to Dee Dee.
Kim Kardashian gave testimony at the Bohana trial aged only 14 as she had been dating one of Tito Jackson's kids.
Kim later said: "My boyfriend’s mother – whom I was really close with – was murdered in 1994, and I had to be part of that trial.
"I had to testify and was there every day with my boyfriend. I was just 14, you know. To have that experience at such a young age was insane."
Bohana was convicted of second-degree murder and sentenced to 15 years to life in prison – but always maintained his innocence.
The Jacksons in their prime.
Jackson went to his grave believing Bohana killed her after she refused to help him financially.
It was nearly 16 years after Dee Dee’s death that Jackson’s world was turned upside down again by the heart attack death of his brother Michael, after he was being pumped full of hospital tranquiliser propofol by his private doctor Conrad Murray.
He was convicted in 2011 of involuntary manslaughter in the singer’s death after giving him the powerful medicine to help him sleep.
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