Maria De La Rosa was a 22-year-old woman and Latin singer from Northridge, California, who was shot and fatally wounded in an ambush-style attack on November 22, 2025, while sitting in a parked car in her neighborhood. According to Los Angeles police and prosecutors, the shooting happened shortly after 1:25 a.m. on Bryant Street near Tampa Avenue in the Northridge area of the San Fernando Valley, where she was inside a vehicle with two other people when men approached and opened fire. All three occupants were struck by multiple rounds. De La Rosa was rushed to a nearby hospital, where she was later pronounced dead, while the two other victims sustained critical injuries and remain survivors of what authorities have described as a sudden, calculated attack.
Investigators say the group had come to the area to meet friends when the assailants confronted them on the quiet residential street. Witnesses reported seeing men walk up to the parked car and fire repeatedly into the cabin before fleeing, leaving shattered glass and shell casings scattered on the pavement. Police later characterized the shooting as “ambush-style” and said it appeared to be linked to a robbery attempt: the attackers allegedly demanded money from the occupants before unleashing gunfire into the vehicle. In the days immediately following the killing, the Los Angeles Police Department noted that the attack might be gang-related, though officials have continued to emphasize that the precise motive is still under investigation.
Before her death, De La Rosa performed under the stage name DELAROSA and was regarded as a rising voice in the Latin music scene as well as a growing social media presence. She had more than 40,000 followers on Instagram and had recently released a single titled “No Me Llames” in August 2025, a track that drew attention within regional music circles. In late October, she shared posts from the studio about working on new material, signaling momentum in a career that was just beginning to take shape. After news of her killing broke, tributes poured in from fans, friends, and music industry figures, including producer Jimmy Humilde, who publicly mourned the loss of a young artist he and others believed had significant potential. Her mother, speaking to local television, described feeling that the world had been robbed not only of a kind and loving daughter but of a burgeoning musical star whose life had been “stolen” in an instant.
Within a few days of the shooting, prosecutors announced that three men had been formally charged in connection with De La Rosa’s death. According to the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office, Francisco Otilio Gaytan and Benny Licon Gomez, both 27, and Eduardo Lopez, 21, all from Northridge, were each charged with one count of murder and two counts of attempted second-degree robbery. Investigators and prosecutors allege that the trio approached the parked car on Bryant Street, demanded money, and then fired multiple shots, striking all three occupants and fatally wounding De La Rosa while the other two victims were left critically injured. Officials have characterized the incident as a “ruthless and targeted attack,” and the DA has vowed to pursue the case aggressively.
Gaytan was arrested the same day as the shooting and Licon Gomez was taken into custody the following day; both are being held on bail amounts exceeding $2 million as they await arraignment and further court proceedings. Lopez remains at large under an active arrest warrant, and authorities continue to ask the public for information that could lead to his capture or shed further light on the events and motives surrounding the ambush. As of the latest public reporting, all three men are accused but not convicted, and the case remains in the pretrial phase while De La Rosa’s family, friends, and the wider music community call for justice for the young artist whose career and life were cut short on a Northridge street in the early hours of that November morning.
