A young Mexican social media influencer known for her beauty and makeup videos has been shot dead during a TikTok live stream, in an incident that has shocked a country grappling with high levels of gender-based violence.
“The death of Valeria Marquez, 23, is being investigated as a femicide,” the Jalisco state attorney general said in a statement released Tuesday night.
According to Mexican authorities, femicide can include humiliating violence, sexual assault, intercourse with the killer or exposing the victim’s body in a public space, the Guardian reports.
“Marquez was killed on Tuesday in the beauty salon where she worked by a man who entered and shot her,” the statement said. The prosecutor’s office did not name the suspect.
Seconds before the incident, Marquez was seen on her TikTok live stream sitting at a table holding a stuffed toy. She could be heard saying, “They’re coming,” before a voice in the background asked, “Hey, Val?”
“Yes,” she replied, just before the sound died away.
Moments later, she was shot dead. One of the people appeared to pick up the phone, and their faces could be seen briefly in the live feed before the video ended.
Marquez, who has nearly 200,000 followers on Instagram and TikTok, said earlier on the live stream that someone came to the salon when she wasn’t there with an “expensive gift.” She seemed concerned saying that she didn’t plan on waiting for the person to return.
According to the latest figures from the United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean, Mexico shares the fourth-highest femicide rate in the region—1.3 deaths per 100,000 women in 2023—alongside Paraguay, Uruguay, and Bolivia. Additionally, Jalisco ranks sixth among Mexico’s 32 states, including Mexico City, for the number of homicides, with 906 cases reported since President Claudia Sheinbaum took office in October 2024, based on data from the consultancy TResearch.
