NewsWorld newsMexicoCesar Gastelum had nearly 600,000 TikTok followers from his comedy videos - he was killed while live streaming outside a fast food restaurant in the northwestern city of Culiacan on Tuesday09:43, 05 Aug 2026Updated 09:49, 05 Aug 2026A social media influencer from Mexico was shot dead in the middle of a livestream on a street in broad daylight.‌Cesar Gastelum, who had amassed 600,000 followers on TikTok with his comedy videos, was streaming live outside a fast food restaurant in the northwestern city of Culiacan on Tuesday when he was killed.‌Two people on a motorbike, both wearing helmets, drove up to him ⁠and his friends and opened fire. The driver of the motorcycle appeared ‌to fire a gun directly at Gastelum’s head in a recording of the livestream.‌Culiacán is a centre for drug cartel activity in Mexico, it is the capital of Sinaloa, where rival factions of the Sinaloa Cartel have fuelled escalating violence. A security official in Sinaloa state confirmed Gastelum's death and added that a significant security operation ‌had been launched.Violence erupted in Sinaloa following the abduction of Sinaloa Cartel leader Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada in 2024 by a son of former cartel leader Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán.‌Zambada was handed over to US authorities and his faction of the cartel went to war with the faction led by Guzmán’s sons.As violence spiralled, US President Donald Trump designated the Sinaloa Cartel, among others, a foreign terrorist organization.The killing of influencer Cesar Gastelum has grim echoes of the 2025 murder of Mexican beauty influencer Valeria Marquez, who was shot to death during a TikTok livestream at the salon where she worked in Zapopan, in the western state of Jalisco.Article continues belowMarquez, 23, was killed after a man entered the salon and opened fire, 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).Authorities have linked Alvarez Ayala to the killing of ‌Marquez and accused him of ordering and financing ‌the November 2025 murder of Uruapan mayor Carlos Manzo.Choose Daily Mirror as a 'Preferred Source' on Google News for quick access to the news you value.‌CrimeMexicoTikTok