KEY POINTS

  • Gabriel Salazar has 2.2 million followers on TikTok
  • He and the other three passengers were pronounced dead at the scene
  • The deceased passengers were illegal migrants from Mexico

TikTok star Gabriel Salazar has died in a police chase in Texas that resulted in a fatal car crash. He was 19.

The Texas Highway Patrol and Zavala County Sheriff’s Office said Salazar was driving a 2014 Chevrolet Camaro north on U.S. Highway 83 near La Pryor, Texas at around 1:25 a.m, on Sept. 26, when the incident happened.

The car chase reportedly started after a deputy overheard a Crystal City Police Department officer initiate a traffic stop, saying he was in “active pursuit” of a white Chevy Camaro.

According to the department, the deputy attempted to deploy a tire deflation device but failed. A few minutes later, a CCPD officer informed the vehicle had already rolled over and was engulfed in flames.

In a statement, authorities stated that Salazar had driven off the road and fell into a ditch after a failed attempt to get back on track. “The vehicle struck some trees, rolled several times, and the vehicle caught fire,” said the authorities.

The accident left Salazar fatally injured. He and his three passengers, Jose Luis Jimenez-Mora, 41, Jose Molina-Lara, 23, and Sergio Espinoza-Flores, 36, were also pronounced dead at the scene.

“All the passengers were Mexican Nationals,” said the highway patrol.

On Sept. 29, the Sheriff’s Office revealed in a statement that three of the victims were illegal Mexican immigrants. “In reference to the motor vehicle accident that occurred on Sunday, Sept. 26, 2021, we have been notified by Homeland Security Investigations that 3 out of the 4 males that died as a result of the accident were identified as illegal immigrants from Mexico.”

The Texas Department of Public Safety is still investigating the crash.

Meanwhile, a man named Chris Vasquez has set up a GoFundMe page for the family of the late TikTok star. “Gabriel loved his family and was always horsing around with her sister and little brother. He was always there with a big hug and smile, and his family will never forget those warm moments. He was so funny with a quiet sense of humor and sarcasm,” the organizer wrote.

Salazar had 2.2 million TikTok followers at the time of his death.

A car burns in a garage as a home goes up in flames during the Hillside fire in the North Park neighborhood of San Bernardino, California on October 31, 2019.
A car burns in a garage as a home goes up in flames during the Hillside fire in the North Park neighborhood of San Bernardino, California on October 31, 2019. AFP / Josh Edelson
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