Businesswoman and Rustan’s matriarch Nena Vargas Tantoco has broken her silence about the tragic loss of her son, Paolo “Paowee” V. Tantoco, who passed away in a Beverly Hills hotel earlier this year.

  Photo: Paolo Tantoco
Source: Facebook

In a heartfelt message shared on Bilyonaryo’s social media four days ago, she pleaded with the public to show compassion and refrain from politicizing his death or casting blame on uninvolved individuals.

According to Tantoco, Paolo died on March 9 (Philippine time) while accompanying his wife, Dina—who is the social secretary of First Lady Liza Marcos—on a professional trip to California.

“He died in the hotel room where he and his wife were staying… The First Lady was not involved in any way with our son’s death,” she clarified.

Addressing circulating rumors, Tantoco confirmed her son had used cocaine, a fact indicated in the autopsy.

However, she emphasized, “Yes, our son used cocaine… and it did not come from the First Lady, nor was she involved.”

She firmly pointed out that the autopsy did not state drug overdose as the cause of death, criticizing misleading narratives based on partial truths.

“The complete autopsy report will come, and it will be publicly known,” she added.

“It made me shed tears… not just for myself, but also for his wife and his children,” she said.

In a message laced with grief, she remembered Paolo as “a son who as far as we know did a lot of good, loves the poor, always caring and loving to his parents and his wife and children… He was kind and compassionate and hard working.”

Tantoco also responded to Senator Imee Marcos, who had earlier urged the Palace to address allegations involving the First Lady in Paolo’s death. She expressed deep sorrow that her son’s demise was being sensationalized and exploited to fuel political disputes.

“It saddens me that our son, Paowee, is being used to aggravate this conflict,” she wrote.

News, photos, or videos that arouse the interest of netizens would often go viral on social media, due to the attention netizens give them. These viral posts appeal to the emotions of netizens, and in rare cases, this could also happen to ordinary people, making them very relatable stories.

In other news, a ride-hailing motorcycle driver and his passenger sustained injuries early Friday, July 18, 2025, after being hit by another motorcycle on EDSA in Makati City, whose driver then fled the scene.

Still in other news, three individuals tragically died and two others were injured early Saturday morning, July 19, 2025, when an SUV and a passenger bus collided on Maharlika Highway in San Pablo City, Laguna. The incident occurred at 1:45 a.m. at the junction of 7UP Road and Soledad Santissimo Road in Barangay San Francisco, with police currently investigating factors including potential adverse weather conditions and a non-functioning traffic light.