A TikTok creator was reportedly shot and killed during a livestream after a suspect allegedly opened fire near a fast food restaurant.
Mexican influencer Cesar Gastelum, who had close to 600,000 followers on the app, was shot and killed on Tuesday at approximately 8 p.m. local time while livestreaming with friends outside a KFC restaurant in Culiacan, a city in northwestern Mexico, according to local authorities.
A public security official in the state of Sinaloa has confirmed his death. A security official said a significant security operation was underway. As of now, officials have not announced any arrests.
According to Reuters, two individuals arrived on a motorcycle and approached Gastelum and the group he was with. Footage from the livestream reviewed by the news agency allegedly showed the driver firing at him, striking him in the head. The attackers then fled the scene. Gastelum died at the scene, with his body left near the exit of the restaurant’s drive-thru as police and military personnel secured the area.
Gastelum, 23, had built an audience through comedic videos. His content also included sketches, recurring characters, music covers, and videos about his daily life. His death marks the second time a Mexican influencer has reportedly been killed while livestreaming on the platform.
The killing comes amid persistent violence in Culiacan, the capital of Sinaloa, which has been at the center of a conflict between rival organized crime factions competing for control. The shooting recalls the May 2025 killing of Mexican beauty influencer Valeria Marquez, 23, who was shot to death during a TikTok livestream at the salon where she worked in Zapopan, in the western state of Jalisco. Marquez was shot in the head and chest by a masked gunman who fled on a motorbike, according to prosecutors. In July, Mexican authorities announced the arrest in Jalisco of Ramon Angel Alvarez Ayala, known as “El R-1,” whom Security Minister Omar Garcia Harfuch identified as the leader of a criminal cell linked to the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG).
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