Who was Cesar Gastelum, Mexican TikToker shot dead mid-livestream?

A popular Mexican TikTok influencer has been shot dead by men on a motorbike near the northern city of Culiacan while he was livestreaming an event for his followers.

Culiacan is at the heart of ongoing violence between factions vying for control of the city. Mexican media have reported that at least 12 social media influencers have been killed in Culiacan since September 2024.

The latest incident follows other similar killings, including that of beauty influencer Valeria Marquez in the western state of Jalisco in May 2025.

Gastelum, 24, was a Mexican social media influencer who created comedy and lifestyle content, primarily on the social media platform TikTok.

Gastelum’s TikTok account , which last posted a video on Sunday, has more than 700,000 followers on his TikTok account .

Gastelum was filming a regular livestream for his followers from a KFC car park in Tres Rios, Culiacan, northern Mexico, with two of his friends on Tuesday.

At about 8:15pm local time (2:15 am GMT), in the middle of the livestream, Gastelum was shot dead by men who approached on a motorbike, Mexican media reported.

The three men were wearing bright orange clothes and carrying delivery bags in the livestream, typically worn by drivers. This reportedly led the police to initially believe that Gastelum was a delivery driver.