What happened to Rafa Wayne? Viral TikTok taxi driver robbed and gunned down during livestream video

Mexican Uber driver and Tiktoker Jesus Rafael Diaz a.k.a. Rafa Wayne, known for sharing drive-along videos as he drove customers, was robbed and murdered during a live broadcast. The tragic incident occurred late at night on December 11, 2023, near Parajes del Sol in Ciudad Juarez.

On Monday, Rafa picked up a patron in Paso Del Norte, Chihuahua as he continued to livestream. At one point during the trip, the robber, who posed as a customer, is heard yelling (translated from Google):

"I’m telling you, give me the f*cking phone number and the current password."

A comment about the incident (Image via X/ @americanovictor)

Reports from The Yucatan Times suggest that the TikToker was threatened at gunpoint. Moments later the broadcast was cut short, as viewers could only helplessly pray. As per an article by Infobae, Rafa's vehicle was found at Yepómera and Salvador Dalí streets.

Following the incident his friends and family, along with various Uber drivers took to the streets demonstrating outside the Prosecutor's Office to demand justice for Rafa and better safety for drivers.

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Police arrest suspects in connection to Rafa Wayne's homicide as he becomes the 4th driver killed in a few months

Rafa Wayne boasted a following of 71k on TikTok and 5k on Facebook. He frequently shared updates on what he saw during his rides, including encounters with interesting people and police activity. He proposed a support group for ride-share drivers in the area where they could exchange information and warn each other of dangerous areas.

As news of the incident spread, several drivers remarked they were victims of frequent violent assaults near the US-Mexico border. Just a month earlier, Ismael Villagomez, a photographer with El Heraldo de Juarez, was murdered while working as a driver.

Initially, Chihuahua Deputy Attorney General Carlos Manuel Salas stated they were investigating Rafa Wayne's cellphone and checked security cameras near the vicinity of the robbery. As per a report by KTSM, on Tuesday, law enforcement officers announced the arrest of two men and three teenagers who had a 9mm handgun. Investigators suspect that the weapon was used to murder Rafa Wayne.

In a statement, the Secretary of Municipal Public Safety announced the two teenagers, 18-year-old Braian Alejandro S.M, and a 16-year-old unidentified boy's description, "coincide(d) with the description of those responsible."

The statement added that once police began questioning the detainees, they immediately turned on each other. The five were initially arrested for intoxication when the law enforcement officers found the gun and four doses of crystal meth on them.

In addition to Alejandro, 36-year-old Hugo Renato, 24-year-old Marcos Jaciel, and another unidentified minor were arrested.

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Rafa Wayne's murder came during a violent 24-hour period in Ciudad Juarez where 11 people were violently murdered in the city. This included a home invasion in the Lucio Blanco neighborhood where two men and a woman were shot dead in a bedroom.

Another incident involved the murder of a man and a woman sitting inside a car at point-blank range by the passenger of a car who stopped next to theirs.