A Mexican influencer was gunned down at a taco shop this week, the latest in an alarming trend that has seen at least 20 south-of-the-border social media stars executed over the last two years.
Jose Luis Esparza, 37, was shot dead on Thursday as he was working at a taquería in Ciudad Obregón, a city in the northern border state of Sonora.
Esparza went by the monicker “El Putirrí” and was known for creating good-humored content about his daily life on Instagram and TikTok.
The Sonora State Attorney General’s Office said the shooter walked into the restaurant and opened fire on Esparza before he fleeing with an accomplice on a motorcycle.
Esparza was treated on the scene by paramedics and rushed to an area hospital, where he died.
Authorities are now investigating whether a relative’s cartel tiesto could have played a role in Esparza’s killing.
The influencer “might have been a collateral target,” Mexican security communications consultant Iván Moile told The Post. “Since he was related to someone deeply involved … It served as a message.”
Esparza is the content creator in Mexico to meet a violent end that could be linked to organized crime.
César Gastélum, who had more than 600,000 TikTok followers and posted content that the reportedly favored the Sinaloa Cartel faction, “Los Mayos,” was shot dead while live streaming outside a KFC in Culiacán, Sinaloa on Aug. 4.
Gunman José Alberto “El Dron” Hidalgo, who was arrested Aug. 26, reportedly told investigators that Gastélum was targeted for “running his mouth” about “Los Chapitos,” the group led by Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán’s sons.
Valeria Márquez was livestreaming on TikTok from her beauty salon in Zapopan when she a gunman shot her three times at point-blank range on May 13, 2025.
Jalisco New Generation Cartel regional leader Ramón Álvarez and his son — Márquez’s former boyfriend — have been accused of orchestrating the execution, which the younger Álvarez has denied.
“Drug trafficking groups have set their sights on influencers for several reasons,” Mexican security analyst David Saucedo told The Post.
“Some influencers form organic ties with drug traffickers for various activities, such as money laundering or acting as front men… when a rival group discovers that an influencer is acting as a front man or laundering money for the opposition, an attack is automatically triggered.”
Other influencers in Mexico not directly involved with cartelsmay also find a target on their backs, Saucedo said.
“In some cases, although influencers are not journalists, they do disseminate information and report on events in their home states or municipalities,” he said. “Drug trafficking groups are keen to control the editorial narrative—specifically, what is said about them, their rivals, or the authorities.”
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