Day 764: Alleged Gunman in Influencer César Gastélum's On-Camera Killing Captured in Puebla

Mexican federal investigators, working from intelligence developed by the National Intelligence Center, located and arrested Jesús Alberto Hidalgo Iribe, alias 'El Dron,' in Puebla state on August 26, 2026. Hidalgo is accused of being one of two gunmen who, on August 4, 2026, shot content creator César Daniel Nolazco Gastélum in the head outside a KFC on Culiacán's Boulevard Enrique Sánchez Alonso while he livestreamed on the platform Kick; his two companions escaped unharmed. Investigators have examined Gastélum's own social media posts, which allegedly referenced criminal organizations including 'MZ' (a reference to Ismael 'El Mayo' Zambada), as part of a possible motive. During the Puebla operation, three armed individuals confronted federal agents; one aggressor was killed in the ensuing exchange while Hidalgo and a second suspect, Jesús Daniel Cazares Medina, were detained. Agents seized three firearms, ammunition, drugs and a vehicle. Secretary of Security Omar García Harfuch confirmed the arrest, crediting SSPC intelligence work for the location. Gastélum's killing was part of a documented pattern of at least a dozen Culiacán social-media influencers killed since September 2024.