A man known as "El Doble R" or "El Tripa" is believed to be the prime suspect in the killing of Valeria Márquez, a 23-year-old beauty influencer who was shot and killed May 13 while livestreaming on TikTok from her beauty salon.
Authorities have identified the suspect as Ricardo Ruiz Velasco, believed to be a high-ranking member of the Cártel Jalisco Nueva Generación (CJNG) operating in the city of Zapopan.
Sources close to the investigation told Mexican outlet Milenio that Ruiz Velasco had been in a romantic relationship with Márquez for several months and believe he frequently became angry over the expensive gifts Márquez received from her followers. Hours prior to the attack Márquez posted a video showing off a luxury gift she received, which investigators suspect may have been a motive in the murder.
The Jalisco state prosecutor's office confirmed that official witness statements, as well as content from Márquez's social media, are being reviewed as part of the ongoing investigation.
Márquez was livestreaming from her salon when a man posing as a delivery driver entered the premises and opened fire after confirming her identity. Márquez was struck twice, once in the chest and once in the head, and was reported dead at the scene by authorities.
Authorities are treating the case as a femicide, a legal classification in Mexico for killings of women due to gender-based violence.
Who is Ricardo Ruiz Velasco?
As reported by Milenio, Ruiz Velasco has a documented history of alleged involvement in high-profile violent crimes.
In 2012 authorities linked him to the murder of Daisy Ferrer Arenas, a Venezuelan national whose body was discovered in a sewage canal in Guadalajara. Her killing was part of a broader investigation into a series of murders involving Venezuelan and Colombian models who worked at the now-defunct Bandidas bar.
Ruiz Velasco is said to lead a CJNG special forces unit known as Grupo Élite, which was reportedly formed to combat the rival Santa Rosa de Lima Cartel in the state of Guanajuato.
In 2020, then-Mexican Secretary of Defense Luis Cresencio Sandoval González announced that Grupo Élite was behind a deadly ambush on police in Villagrán, which left three officers dead, another injured, and four individuals kidnapped.
Ruiz Velasco was also implicated in the December 2017 killing of Juan Luis Lagunas, known online as "El Pirata de Culiacán." Authorities believe the murder was retaliation for Lagunas' insults toward CJNG leader Nemesio "El Mencho" Oseguera Cervantes. Lagunas was gunned down inside a bar near the border of Zapopan and Tlaquepaque in Jalisco.
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