Mexico arrests suspect in influencer livestream killing

Mexican authorities arrested a man suspected of shooting influencer Cesar Gastelum dead during a livestream, Security Minister Omar Garcia Harfuch said Wednesday.

Gastelum was attacked on August 4 in Culiacan, the capital of Sinaloa state. He had more than 500,000 TikTok followers and was dressed as a food delivery worker for a social media challenge with two friends when a motorcycle stopped beside him. One of two riders shot him in the head.

Harfuch said the suspected killer was found in Puebla state, in central Mexico. During the arrest operation, police came under attack by three armed people and killed one of them, he wrote on X. Authorities arrested the suspected killer and another person.

Mexico's security secretariat said a preliminary investigation showed the killing was related to Gastelum's social media posts “alluding to a faction of a criminal group.”

Sinaloa has been a battleground for warring drug factions. A conflict between the two main factions of the Sinaloa Cartel and associated armed groups has left thousands dead or missing in the northwestern state, while President Claudia Sheinbaum seeks to contain criminal violence.

The cartel was founded by Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman, who is imprisoned in the United States. Mexican media have reported that social media influencers are often tied to disputing criminal gangs in Culiacan, leading to intimidation or score-settling.