Friends of Bad Bunny Superfan Want Him to Dedicate His Oakland Show to Her After She Was Murdered by Her Boyfriend
On Wednesday September 7, 22-year-old Vanessa Rodriguez-Cermeno was brutally stabbed and killed by her 21-year-old boyfriend, Jose Guardado-Lara, after a heated argument in Rodriguez-Cermeno’s car that was caught by a nearby surveillance camera, reports The Mercury News. The murder took place on E Street near 98th Avenue in East Oakland.
According to charges filed on September 8, Guardado-Lara, who was caught close to the murder scene after an eyewitness reported what they saw to local police, “took advantage of a position of trust and confidence to commit the offense.” He was found with blood on his pants and is being held at Santa Rita Jail without bail.
Two of Vanessa’s closest friends, Victor Ramos and Estefanny Abubakar, remember her as one of the world’s biggest Bad Bunny fans. The friends had tickets to his September 14 show in Oakland and are still planning to attend in her honor. In fact, they want Bad Bunny to dedicate his Oakland show to their late friend.
Benito is known for speaking out about issues that are important to him. Just recently, he invited members of the Uvalde community to attend one of his shows. In February 2020, he shed light on the killing of a trans woman in Puerto Rico named Alexa Negrón Luciano, who was shot dead in a hate crime caught on camera.
mitú spoke with Ramos about his mission to contact Benito by any means necessary. “Vanessa was our best friend,” he said. “She was loved and cared for and had an amazing heart. She was always listening or singing to Bad Bunny. Everyone that knows her knows that she was the biggest Benito stan.”
He continued, “This would have been her third concert. She was very much excited for it. Her last Instagram story shows a countdown for the concert. Unfortunately, she was taken from us too soon.” Victor has been attempting to reach out to Bad Bunny’s team through Twitter in time for the September 14 show while Estefanny posted a TikTok explaining their mission.
“Although we are mourning we want to honor her memory,” he explained. “The idea of getting Bad Bunny’s attention was Estefanny’s. She said, ‘Victor, I would love for Bad Bunny to dedicate the Oakland Concert to Vanessa,’ and I said, ‘Oh my god yes, let’s do it.'”
Together, the two have called on their social media following to relay the message in the hopes of getting Benito’s attention. Bad Bunny fans from around the world have responded to Ramos and Abubakar, lending words of support and rooting for them as they work to get the attention of Rodriguez-Cermeno’s favorite musician.
Thus far, their plight has been successful. “I shared on all of my social media platforms and Estefanny did the same,” Ramos said, noting that both his tweet and Estefanny’s TikTok have been gaining traction online. “We want to honor Vanessa, and we believe that this will help. If she were here, she would be thrilled.”
An official Twitter page for Bad Bunny’s tour responded to their determination to honor Rodriguez-Cermeno’s legacy, and with enough support, it’s very possible that word will get back to Benito. More than anything, Ramos and Abubakar want people to know about Rodriguez-Cermeno’s story and make sure the world never forgets her.
There is, however, still the matter of Rodriguez-Cermeno’s funeral expenses, which are being paid for by her family, who have “also started a GoFundMe for their personal expense,” Ramos said. “It has been gaining traction and support as well.” At time of publication, the campaign has raised just over half of its $15,000 goal.
