MEXICO CITY (AP) — A gunman killed a social media influencer during a live stream in Mexico's volatile northwestern state of Sinaloa, authorities said Wednesday, a public killing that underscored ongoing violence targeting social media personalities in the Latin American nation.
The influencer, César Gastélum, was killed on Tuesday night in the Sinaloa state capital of Culiacan, officials said. Mexican authorities implied the killing of the young man was linked to cartel violence but did not blame any particular group.
A video of the moment of his death, which was viewed by The Associated Press, shows him laughing with two other men in the parking lot of a Kentucky Fried Chicken when two men pull up on a motorcycle. One is seen pulling out a gun and shooting Gastélum. The attackers then flee the scene.
The attack was carried out just blocks away from the local prosecutor's office during rush hour.
Mexico’s Security Cabinet and local prosecutors said an investigation was ongoing, and that it appeared Gastélum had released some videos in which he “alluded to a faction of a criminal group.”
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum told journalists during her morning news conference on Wednesday that the “perpetrators must be arrested.”
"We must find out why this deplorable homicide occurred,” she said.
Gastélum had more than 650,000 followers on TikTok, and more on Instagram and other social media platforms and would regularly post comedy videos and content layered over Mexican regional music. He at times referred to himself in his videos as “bélico,” a term often used in subcultures in Mexico to imply a connection to cartel culture.
Messages of “rest in peace” were posted on Gastélum's social media accounts on Wednesday.
Sinaloa has in recent years been ravaged by warring between two factions of the Sinaloa Cartel. At the height of the fighting, dead bodies would be left across the city marked with a faction's signature. One of them, Los Chapitos, would regularly leave a pizza or a pizza box on a dead body. The other, Los Mayos, would leave behind a sombrero, and it soon became dangerous to wear the hats in Culiacan as it could signify allegiance to one group.
On Tuesday night, Gastélum was filmed wearing a white sombrero.
On Wednesday, candles were lit on the pavement where he was killed. It was the second time in little more than a year that a content creator was fatally shot by gunmen on a live stream.
In May 2025, 23-year-old beauty influencer Valeria Márquez was shot and killed while doing a TikTok livestream at a beauty salon in the central Mexican state of Jalisco.
The killing comes at a time when Mexico’s government is under mounting pressure by the Trump administration to crack down on cartel violence.
Gastélum's death is part of a larger trend by criminal groups targeting influencers, especially in regions like Sinaloa and Jalisco dominated by organized crime.
Mexican security analyst David Saucedo said influencers are killed or threatened for a wide range of reasons. In some cases, the targeted influencers may have had ties to one criminal faction in a disputed region, producing social media content for them or having romantic relationships with cartel members. In others, influencers launder money for cartels or disseminate information similar to a journalist.
“Cartels are interested in dictating and controlling ... the regions where they operate," Saucedo said. The aim is to turn them "into channels for disseminating criminal messages.”
Associated Press journalist Aarón Ibarra in Culiacan, Mexico, contributed to this report.
Follow AP’s coverage of Latin America and the Caribbean at https://apnews.com/hub/latin-america
Candles sit near the spot where César Gastélum, a social media influencer, was killed the previous night in Culiacán, Mexico, Wednesday, Aug. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Aaron Ibarra)
CHICAGO (AP) — Pete Crow-Armstrong was terrific once again. Same for Shohei Ohtani.
It was quite a day in an increasingly compelling race for the NL MVP award.
Crow-Armstrong homered twice and drove in four runs to help the Chicago Cubs beat Ohtani and the Los Angeles Dodgers 7-6 on Wednesday for a sweep of their three-game series. But Ohtani also went deep twice and finished with three hits.
“I do think they were going toe to toe,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. “You know, obviously, there’s a lot of talk about those two guys being the front-runner for the MVP. They both showed up, and you can see that they hear what's being said about them, and that was fun for the fans certainly.”
Crow-Armstrong, 24, is Chicago's regular center fielder, but he served as the designated hitter for the series finale against LA. That gave him an opportunity to take a closer look at Ohtani's brilliance at the plate.
“I just enjoy watching him play baseball,” Crow-Armstrong said. “So I guess today for me what was cool was just getting to watch him from a different angle and not worrying about going and trying to catch balls that are hit at 1,000 miles an hour.”
Ohtani and Crow-Armstrong exchanged leadoff shots in the first inning. It was Ohtani's 11th leadoff homer this season and No. 35 for his career. It was Crow-Armstrong's fourth career leadoff drive — all this season.
Crow-Armstrong added an RBI double in the second and a two-run shot in the fourth, a 405-foot laser that went off the videoboard in right field. It was the 31st homer to hit that videoboard since it was installed in 2015.
Ohtani capped the Dodgers' five-run eighth inning with a two-run drive to left-center. It was his first multihomer game of the season and No. 24 for his career.
“That’s two great players,” Cubs manager Craig Counsell said. “Yeah, they were kind of doing everything offensively for their teams, for sure. Pretty impressive.”
Ohtani won his second straight NL MVP award in 2025, smacking 55 homers and recording a 2.87 ERA in 14 starts on the mound for the Dodgers. He is 8-2 with a 1.79 ERA in 14 starts this year, but he hasn't been able to pitch since July 3 because of left knee soreness and a right biceps injury.
While Ohtani has been limited to DH duties of late, Crow-Armstrong has become an offensive force while playing his usual stellar defense in center. The two-time All-Star is batting .288 with 26 homers, 28 steals and 69 RBIs in 115 games. He went 6 for 13 in the series against LA with two homers and five RBIs.
At the very least, he has turned the NL MVP race into an intriguing competition.
“He’s a great player but I’m really focused on myself right now on the hitting side of things and I’m really working towards hopefully getting back on the mound and just working on that side of the side of game as well,” Ohtani said through a translator.
Ohtani, 32, said his knee is feeling better, but it's hard to tell what the schedule is going to look like in terms of returning to pitching. Asked if the Dodgers' trade for Tarik Skubal affects his urgency level for getting back on the mound, he said he lets the front office decide the tempo of his progression.
“But at the same time it’s really nice to see Tarik on our side and being able to see him pitch live,” Ohtani said.
Ohtani, a four-time MVP and six-time All-Star, certainly isn't having any trouble at the plate. He is batting .457 (16 for 35) with four homers and nine RBIs during a nine-game hitting streak. He is hitting .297 with 26 homers, 70 RBIs and a .953 OPS in 109 games on the year.
“I think if you guys want to talk about all this back and forth, I really should go get in the lab and start pitching,” Crow-Armstrong cracked. “I really should."
Crow-Armstrong said he is more focused on the team's success than the MVP race, but he was honored to be mentioned alongside Ohtani.
“Simply put, just having your name in the same conversation as someone as profound as he feels, it’s awesome and it’s a nice nod,” he said.
AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb
Los Angeles Dodgers designated hitter Shohei Ohtani celebrates in the dugout with teammates after hitting a home during the first inning of a baseball game against the Chicago Cubs in Chicago, Wednesday, Aug. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Jessie Alcheh)
Chicago Cubs designated hitter Pete Crow-Armstrong follows through on an RBI double during the second inning of a baseball game against the Los Angeles Dodgers in Chicago, Wednesday, Aug. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Jessie Alcheh)
