Francisco Álvarez, the fugitive son of jailed Jalisco New Generation Cartel regional leader Ramón Álvarez, has denied in a new interview that he or his father orchestrated the murder of his influencer ex-girlfriend Valeria Márquez.
The 30-minute interview with Mexican journalist Luis Chaparro of “Pie de Nota” was filmed at an undisclosed location in Jalisco and posted to the outlet’s YouTube channel on Aug. 21. Francisco Álvarez, who remains on the run from authorities, used the platform to reject accusations that he asked his father, known as “R1,” to order the killing.
“I don’t understand how anyone can accuse us, saying things like, ‘Oh, he asked his dad for a favor,’ when there is absolutely no basis for it,” Francisco Álvarez told Chaparro.
“I mean, was the person making such statement actually present when I supposedly asked for that favor? Of course not.”
Mexico’s security chief Omar García Harfuch had linked the father and son to Márquez’s murder during a July 31 press conference announcing the previous day’s arrest of Ramón Álvarez. The elder Álvarez was detained for the November 2025 assassination of Uruapan, Michoacán Mayor Carlos Manzo.
“R1’s son was in a romantic relationship with Valeria and had already threatened her on several occasions; all indications – and this is about to be proven – are that the son asked his father, ‘R1,’ to commit the femicide,” García Harfuch said at the briefing.
The following day, Aug. 1, police arrested Iván Martín for his “possible involvement prior to, during, and after the attack that claimed the victim’s life,” according to the Jalisco State Attorney General’s Office. The office announced on Aug. 6 that between two and three additional people may have been involved in the plot.
Francisco Álvarez told Pie de Nota that he first met Márquez in 2021 when she worked as a promoter at a Guadalajara nightclub. They began seriously dating in 2024 and moved in together. He said Márquez met his father, attended his birthday party and knew who he was.
The couple split in January 2025 but remained friends and saw each other in April, he said. He claimed he was at his home, several blocks from Márquez’s business, when she was killed, and that they had exchanged text messages in the hours before her death.
“A friend called me … told me, ‘I tuned in to watch a live stream of Valeria’s, and – well – she got shot right there,'” Francisco Álvarez said.
He said investigators recovered Márquez’s cell phones and that their exchanged messages would clear him. He chose not to attend her funeral because he was receiving hate messages on social media, but reached out to Márquez’s father to explain his absence.
Márquez was executed on May 13, during a TikTok livestream from her beauty salon in Zapopan, Jalisco. During the broadcast, after learning someone had visited the store asking for her, she wondered aloud if someone intended to harm her.
“Maybe they were going to kill me or something,” she said.
An unidentified gunman who remains at large approached Márquez during the livestream, confirmed her identity, and shot her three times before fleeing, according to authorities.
Francisco Álvarez said he learned of the government’s accusation through social media and has “no idea” who was behind the shooting.
“I am completely innocent; I have nothing to do with it,” he said. “She was my partner; there is nothing that would have made me want to commit such a barbaric act.”
He explained that he chose to speak out while fugitive because he feared police would stop him in a vehicle, plant drugs and guns on him, and pin Márquez’s murder on him without the public hearing his account.
“I didn’t think about turning myself in because I haven’t committed any crime,” he said. “If a judge were to summon me, of course, I could go and give a statement. I’m open to that. There’s no reason for me to refuse. I mean, I’m innocent of that.”
Ramón Álvarez was indicted Wednesday by a federal grand jury in Washington, DC, on drug trafficking charges. From 2004 to December 2023, he and his brother Rafael Álvarez allegedly conspired to manufacture and distribute five or more kilos of cocaine and more than 500 grams of methamphetamine imported into the US, according to the Department of Justice. The siblings also face firearm charges including use of a machine gun. Each faces a minimum of 40 years and maximum of two life sentences.
It remains unknown whether Ramón Álvarez will be extradited to the US following his indictment.