On Tuesday, a Mexican social media influencer was fatally shot while live streaming outside a restaurant in Sinaloa, a region plagued by gang and cartel violence.
Cesar Gastelum, who boasted over 600,000 followers on TikTok, was engaged in a live broadcast alongside two friends, all of whom were dressed as food delivery personnel for a challenge.
Footage circulating online captured a motorcycle arriving next to the group, with the rider reportedly firing at Gastelum during the livestream, as per video observed by Reuters news agency.
Authorities confirmed Gastelum’s death, and the live stream was subsequently terminated and removed from the platform, although images and videos of the incident have continued to spread online.
Initially, local officials mistakenly reported the shooting victim as a delivery worker before clarifying that the deceased was Gastelum, who was 25 years old and known for his lifestyle content.
The shooting occurred in a bustling shopping area close to the Sinaloa prosecutor’s office in Culiacan, the capital of the state.
In response to the incident, soldiers and police were deployed to the scene while forensic teams gathered evidence and handled the body, as shown in footage from local news broadcasts.
The area has faced turmoil over the past two years due to infighting among powerful local cartels.
Local media reported that approximately a dozen influencers, some allegedly associated with criminal organizations, have been murdered in Sinaloa in recent years.
Last year, Valeria Marquez, another Mexican influencer, was shot while streaming from a beauty salon on TikTok, where she had amassed tens of thousands of followers. Prosecutors indicated she was targeted by a hitman and expressed her fear prior to her death.
In July, law enforcement announced the arrest of Ramon Angel Alvarez Ayala in Jalisco, who was linked to both Marquez’s murder and the November 2025 killing of Uruapan mayor Carlos Manzo, according to Reuters.
Marquez’s death sent shockwaves across Mexico, a nation grappling with pervasive violence, highlighting both the epidemic of femicide and the increasing dangers faced by social media influencers.
In January 2025, reports emerged of a small aircraft dropping pamphlets in Culiacan, threatening around 20 artists and YouTubers over alleged affiliations with a rival faction of the Sinaloa drug cartel.
Influencers have also been targeted in other Latin American countries. In Venezuela, authorities arrested a suspected accomplice in the murder of a TikTok influencer who was killed during a livestream after calling out members of the Tren de Aragua gang and allegedly corrupt police officers.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
