A YOUNG social media influencer was tragically shot dead while livestreaming on TikTok, shortly after identifying prominent officials and gang leaders he alleged were extorting him.
The 25-year-old begged for help as gunmen stormed his home and opened fire in a chilling ambush that played out in real time online.
The shocking attack happened in Venezuela and has since sparked an investigation by the country’s top prosecutor.
Jesus Sarmiento, who boasted 87,000 followers on TikTok, was shown bleeding on the ground in the unsettling video, weakly repeating, “They shot me, they shot me.”
Two armed men then appeared on screen and allegedly fired more rounds at him as his mother screamed and pounded on a door nearby.
Spanish newspaper El País reported that he was shot at least nine times and died shortly after.
His mother, who was also in the home, was reportedly shot in the abdomen but survived the ordeal.
Just hours before the incident, Sarmiento had populated his social media with videos accusing government officials and the police of collaborating with infamous Venezuelan gangs.
He named high-profile figures including Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello and Aragua Governor Johana Sánchez.
He also claimed he was being targeted by the feared Tren del Llano and Tren de Aragua gangs, even tagging the posts with usernames of law enforcement agencies, Daily Mail reported.
In one clip, he accused corrupt officers of trying to silence him and said, “We are overrun with delinquent officials who work with common criminals.”
Sarmiento also claimed he had been kidnapped by Venezuela’s Directorate of Strategic and Tactical Actions.
He begged for help from the Bolivarian National Intelligence Service and shared his home address in a desperate attempt to get protection.
The influencer was a computer programmer and was reportedly heading to court in Maracay at the time of the livestreams, after filing harassment complaints against two ex-partners.
He had recently spent 15 days in La Morita prison, a Bolivarian Police-run facility, and said threats were still coming from inside.
Prosecutors confirmed an investigation is underway and that Sarmiento had gone public about the threats he was receiving.
Tren de Aragua – Venezuela’s Most Feared Gang
- Dubbed a terrorist organization by US officials
- Linked to murder, extortion, drug trafficking, and kidnappings
- Allegedly led by fugitive Hector “Niño Guerrero” Flores
- Originated in Tocoron prison, Venezuela
- Believed to have spread to at least 25 US states
- Members recently deported to El Salvador under Trump order
- Venezuelan government claims the gang no longer exists
Attorney General Tarek William Saab said his office was “tasked with investigating, identifying, and punishing those responsible for the assassination.”
Sarmiento had “denounced the threats he was receiving from members of GEDOS and alleged police officers,” prosecutor said in a statement.
The Tren de Aragua gang, which the US has labeled a terrorist group, has been tied to murders, extortion, drug trafficking, and contract killings.
Its leader Hector Rutherford Guerrero Flores, known as “Niño Guerrero,” has been on the run since 2023 after a major military raid on Tocoron prison.
Venezuelan authorities claim the gang has been dismantled, with Minister Cabello dismissing it as “nothing more than an urban legend.”
Hundreds of alleged Tren de Aragua members were deported from the US earlier this year and sent to El Salvador’s notorious Terrorism Confinement Center.
President Trump ordered the move under the Alien Enemies Act, saying the gang as “invading” the US.
The deportations triggered lawsuits and protests, with critics saying many were removed without proper hearings.
President Nayib Bukele agreed to house the deportees and was praised by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio for helping “remove violent criminals” from American streets.
Tren de Aragua is believed to have entered the US in 2022, blending in with waves of South American migrants crossing the southern border.
The gang has since spread across at least 25 US states, according to officials.
In a similar case last month, a young influencer in Mexico was murdered during a livestream, shocking the country.
That case is being investigated as a femicide, but authorities said there was no evidence of gang involvement.
