Tito Jackson told his best friend he “couldn’t breathe” and “didn’t feel good” moments before he was rushed to a New Mexico hospital, where he later died of a heart attack.
Terry Harvey Maltbia, Jackson’s business partner and best friend, exclusively told DailyMail.com that he and the singer were in Gallup, New Mexico, and stopped for a bite to eat before heading back down the road to Jackson’s ranch in Oklahoma.
Maltbia, Jackson and another friend, Ronald Balfour, were on a road trip from Oaklahoma to California, where the trio picked up Jackson’s vintage cars at his home.
They arrived in New Mexico around 6 p.m. Sunday and stopped near the American Heritage Plaza shopping center in Gallup for a bite to eat before making the long drive back to Oklahoma.
“We had just finished eating turkey and chicken, laughing and talking,” Maltbia said Monday. “We were putting the top up on the convertible because it started raining. That’s when Tito came back to the passenger side window and said, ‘My chest hurts. Can you help Ronnie finish the top?'”
Tito Jackson (left) with friends Ronald Balfour (center) and Terry Harvey Maltbia collected the singer’s vintage cars in California and were returning to Oklahoma when Jackson suffered a heart attack.
The trio were supposed to return to the city before Jackson planned to fly to Atlanta for another event. On the dashboard is one of Jackson’s signature hats.
“He said, ‘I don’t feel good in my chest.’ He wiped his face, took off his shirt, and it was like someone had thrown a bucket of water on him.”
Maltbia said he alerted nearby officers and Jackson was then rushed to a local hospital.
Jackson asked his friends to look for his insurance card in his bag as they drove him to the emergency room.
Moments later, Jackson’s condition worsened.
“I thought everything was going to be OK because we took him to the hospital and he was still talking,” Maltbia said, surprised.
‘I had an appearance scheduled at the Boys & Girls Club in Atlanta on Tuesday, but we thought we would miss it and have to stay overnight.
“And then a woman came back out and said, ‘He’s not doing well.’ I said, ‘What do you mean? He’s not doing well because he can’t get up? What do you mean? I was talking to him! ‘”
“They took me there and I looked at him,” Maltbia said with a sigh. “There were about seven doctors treating him and it got a lot worse. I called his brother, Marlon, and that’s when he died.”
The Jacksons had recently returned from a show in Munich, Germany, just four days before Tito’s sudden death.
Inside Tito Jackson’s ranch in Claremore, Oklahoma, where the musician moved earlier this year
Jackson’s remains are under the jurisdiction of the New Mexico Office of the Medical Investigator.
An autopsy has not yet been performed as the medical examiner waits for Jackson’s remains to be transported to Albuquerque, where the examination will be conducted, Chris Ramirez, a spokesman for the medical examiner’s office, told DailyMail.com on Monday.
Jackson’s family friend and former manager Steve Manning also confirmed that the 70-year-old artist died of a heart attack.
Amid their grief, Maltbia said he and Balfour decided to drive to their final destination in memory of their beloved friend.
The couple arrived in Oklahoma and unloaded the vintage cars Monday afternoon at Jackson’s sprawling ranch in Claremore, where the singer had moved earlier this year.
Friends said Jackson decided to move to the small town of about 20,000 people to get away from the hustle and bustle of city life.
Howard Pollack, a friend and business partner of Jackson’s, said that although Jackson had only lived in the community for a short time, he had plans to bring a music festival and other entertainment events to the area.
His friend and business partner Howard Pollack (right) said Tito Jackson quickly opened his heart and doors to the community.
Jackson, Pollack and Maltbia had plans to bring a major music festival to the area next year, to be called “Tunes & Spoons.” Jackson even held an event at his ranch to announce the idea.
Pollack and Maltbia, who own a show management company, were working with Jackson to bring a restaurant to the Tulsa area. A few weeks ago, they also announced plans to hold a “Tunes & Spoons” event next year, which would include a music festival and chili cook-off.
The city was hoping to attract about 40,000 people for the three-day festival, according to local publication Tulsa World.
Jackson enjoyed and embraced country life, while also finding a way to bring his passion for music to his neighbors, friends said.
“He brought a new energy to the community,” Pollack told DailyMail.com. “He wanted to bring some music to the area and that’s when we came up with the idea for the festival. He was very involved because his family had roots here as well.”
Jackson told the Tulsa World he was interested in settling in rural Oklahoma because his uncle Samuel Jackson ran a funeral home in 1917 in Tulsa.
Tito toured the world as part of the iconic Jackson 5, led by his younger brother Michael and his siblings Jackie, Jermaine and Marlon Jackson.
Jackson said his uncle’s business burned down during the Tulsa Race Massacre in 1921, but they were able to rebuild the funeral home.
The musician was recently in Munich, Germany, ahead of a performance by the current lineup of The Jacksons, which also includes brothers Jackie and Marlon Jackson.
Just four days before his death, Jackson shared a photograph of himself and his siblings visiting a memorial in Munich dedicated to his younger brother and King of Pop, Michael.
In the touching caption, Tito wrote: “We are deeply grateful for this special place that honors not only his memory but also our shared legacy. Thank you for keeping his spirit alive.”
Pollack said Jackson was working on new music and even building a studio at his Claremore ranch.
Tito Jackson’s sprawling ranch was located near a lake where the singer enjoyed spending hours fishing.
In addition to making music, Jackson enjoyed fishing in the lake located near his property.
Friends said Jackson found “the peace he was looking for” in the rural town.
“I always wanted to get away from the West Coast and experience life somewhere with new people and new culture,” Jackson told the Tulsa World.
Jackson is survived by his three children Taj, 41, Taryll, 39, and TJ, 46, who were in the band 3T, and nine grandchildren.