A TikTok influencer “was killed” Friday evening when her car plunged into a canal near a Sinaloa beach resort, multiple reports in Mexico said.
Hours before a car believed to be hers was pulled from the water, Michelle Lizarraga, 22, aka La Bellota, had posted a video to her 14,000 followers and 93,000 likes showing her partying in a local nightclub on the night of September 7. in Mazatlan. Her car was not discovered until 8 a.m. on September 8.
Lizarraga, who has been called a “beauty influencer” in reports, was identified by her 666 tattoo on her arm. She was 22 years old.
One report says Lizarraga’s black Jetta car flooded and capsized after hitting water in what is described as an irrigation canal in the community of San Francisquito. Officials have yet to confirm her identity.
In the video, the TikTok star is seen at a nightclub with local music playing in the background as she drinks a bottle of champagne. Lizarraga hugs two friends during the short clip.
Michelle Lizarraga, known as ‘La Bellota’, posted a video of herself drinking a bottle of champagne hours before she was allegedly murdered
A widely shared photo of the scene shows a black Jetta being pulled from the irrigation canal
The video comments have been flooded with people offering their condolences. “Beautiful friend, I’m going to miss you,” said one friend. “Rest in peace my queen, I love you friend,” said another.
Meanwhile, Mazatlan-based lawyer Maria Teresa Guerra Ochoa has said she is waiting for an official report before ruling out foul play in Lizarraga’s “death.”
“There was an incident here in the south of the state, especially in this municipality, but it has not yet been confirmed that it was an incident of violence,” Ochoa said, according to Linea Directa.
“We are waiting for the results of the investigation and so far we are still at the same count with 21 femicides and two intentional murders,” the lawyer added.
The crash is being investigated by the attorney general’s office, which has collected evidence at the scene, reports Noroeste.
Officials described the victim as wearing a “short gray dress, approximately 30 years old, with light skin and black hair.”
The Linea Directa story says that members of the Villa Union Veteran Firefighter tried in vain to save her life. Video recorded at the scene shows rescue vehicles attempting to pull the car from the water.
Lizarraga had racked up 93,000 likes despite posting just 21 videos. Many of her messages state that she is receiving flowers as a gift. One video, from August, shows her drinking champagne in the front seat of a car while a man drives at high speed.
Lizarraga had around 14,000 followers on TikTok despite posting fewer than 25 videos
“I will miss you so much, and I don’t know if I can ever get used to your absence,” a friend wrote on Facebook
A local activist lawyer told media they had to wait until the official police report was released before ruling out foul play
A friend of Lizarraga wrote a long, heartbreaking message Posting on Facebook after news of the influencer’s death spread.
“I can’t understand how someone with so many illusions, talent and a wonderful human being can leave so suddenly,” the message read in part.
“You were a light in my life, you illuminated many of my dark moments, and now that light will be in my heart. I don’t want to remember you sad because I know you wouldn’t like that. I will try to remember you with your smile, with your jokes,” the post continued.
“I will miss you so much, and I don’t know if I can ever get used to your absence,” the post concluded.
With Lizarraga’s apparent death still under investigation, Mexican authorities continue to crack down on Sinaloa’s notoriously violent drug cartel.
Reports from earlier this year said that since the capture of Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman, his sons have steered the family’s fentanyl business and set up a network of labs producing vast quantities of the cheap, deadly drug that they smuggled into the U.S. prosecutors say. revealed in an indictment.