The Femicide of Valeria Márquez and the Dark Power of “El Doble RR”.
It is an image that has burned itself into the digital present of Mexico - a young woman, 23 years old, beautiful, full of life, holding a stuffed animal in her arms, sitting in front of her smartphone. She is livestreaming, smiling, glancing briefly out the window. Then come the shots. Three impacts - twice in the head, once in the chest. Seconds later, she is dead.
Her name was Valeria Márquez - influencer, aesthetician, beauty queen. Her alleged killer - Ricardo Ruiz Velazco, known as “El Doble RR,” “RR” or “El Tripa,” a man who is far more than a jealous ex-boyfriend. He is one of the most feared names in Mexico’s drug war - a high-ranking leader of the Jalisco Nueva Generación Cartel (CJNG), one of the most brutal criminal organizations in the Western Hemisphere.
A murder in front of the camera
The attack took place in a beauty salon in the Zapopan district of Guadalajara, in the Mexican state of Jalisco. Valeria ran her own boutique studio there. When she started her TikTok livestream, she had no idea she would be sharing her final moment with the world. A man on a motorcycle, disguised as a courier, entered the salon - and opened fire.
Valeria died instantly. Emergency responders arrived within minutes - but any help came too late. Social networks filled with shock, grief, and angry questions. Who was this man who took her life? And why?
The shadow figure – Who is El Doble RR?
Ricardo Ruiz Velazco is no stranger. In the criminal underworld of Mexico, he is one of the most feared names. His gang is said to be involved in kidnappings, murders, drug trafficking, and political executions. His name appears again and again in connection with notorious acts of violence - including the 2017 murder of YouTuber Juan Luis Lagunas Rosales (“El Pirata de Culiacán”), or the 2013 killing of Secretary of Tourism José de Jesús Gallegos Álvarez, allegedly because she insulted CJNG boss “El Mencho.”
Ruiz Velazco is not just a cartel leader - he is the embodiment of that toxic power that drives men in Mexico to see women not as human beings but as property. According to reports from security circles, he was jealous because Valeria had received expensive gifts from her fans. She herself had stated shortly before her death that “if anything were to happen to her or her family, Ricardo would be responsible.”
Femicide in numbers – and faces
Valeria’s death is not an isolated case. In Mexico, on average, a woman is murdered every three hours - many of these killings are classified as femicides, that is, murders with misogynistic motives. According to the United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America (CEPAL), Mexico ranks among the most dangerous countries in the region with 1.3 killings per 100,000 women - alongside Paraguay, Uruguay, and Bolivia.
The state of Jalisco, where Valeria lived and died, has become one of the most violent states in the country under President Claudia Sheinbaum, with over 900 registered homicides since October 2024, according to TResearch.
Beauty, visibility – and a system failure
Valeria Márquez was more than a pretty face on Instagram. She was Miss Rostro 2021, an independent entrepreneur, and active on social media with over 200,000 followers. Her beauty was public – and it became her downfall. She lived in a country that celebrates beauty but hates women when they are too visible, too independent, too free.
What happened to her is the very essence of systemic machismo, which no longer hides in Mexico but rides in armed on motorcycles to beauty salons.
The investigation – and the silence of the institutions
Authorities in Jalisco have yet to officially confirm whether Ricardo Ruiz Velazco has been arrested. They speak of an “unknown assailant,” even though social media, media outlets, and Valeria’s own premonition had long named him. The police are investigating – officially. But public trust is low. Too often, perpetrators like RR have been protected, too often the state has acted more like an accomplice than a shield.
Conclusion – Mexico in the mirror of a murder
The murder of Valeria Márquez is not a tabloid headline. It is a mirror. It shows how violence, power, and masculinity are still fused in Mexico. It shows how a country keeps losing its women – in front of the camera, under the harsh light of social media.
And it shows how urgently Mexico needs a justice system that does not hesitate, but acts. A society that does not fall silent, but screams.
Because Valeria is not an isolated case. She was only visible.
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