Fil-Am reality TV star seeks NBI investigation into death of mother who died after undergoing cosmetic surgery in PH

US-based Filipino-American reality TV star Ronn Tristan Perez is seeking justice for his mother, who passed away after she underwent cosmetic procedures in the Philippines in March.

In an interview with the press on Thursday, Sept. 10, at the NBI office, Perez narrated why he is in the country. "I'm filing to get an investigation to look into my mom's death," he said.

Perez said his mother traveled to the Philippines early this year to get cosmetic surgery, including liposuction and Brazilian butt lifts. But it didn't go as planned.

"Next thing I see, I FaceTime her; she's pale. She's missing a tooth," said the former Mister Philippines USA 2026 contestant, adding that it worried him and his brother to no end.

About two days later, Perez got a call at 3 a.m. from his uncle and stepfather. Both were wailing on the phone as they told him about his mother's death.

"I've been here since, just trying to get clarity on what happened," Perez said.

In his media interview, Perez said that instead of grieving, he has been gathering evidence.

"I don't want to be doing this. I want to go home. I want to cry about my mom, about losing her. And I'm here doing interviews like this, looking at medical records. I'm tired. I wanna come home to my family, to my friends," he said.

According to him, since he arrived in Manila, the answers he's been getting run along the lines of, "Hey, it happens."

"That's not good enough for me," he said.

Although Perez emphasized that he's "not accusing anyone of anything," he said he just needed "documents, papers, [expert opinions] that... what was done here was everything that was supposed to be done."

He said if it turns out that nothing wrong happened during his mother's surgeries, he would devote his life "to making sure this doesn't happen to anybody else." If the investigation uncovers some human lapses, however, and "the person is found guilty, I'm gonna pursue that case with everything that I have," he continued.

Perez underscored how the cosmetic procedures his mother had done are "the most dangerous things that you can perform," necessitating due diligence before, during, and after the procedure. 

"I'm hoping that all of that was taken into consideration; that people weren't just taking her money, preying on her insecurities about her looks, and making a quick buck off of her," he said. 

The incident happened around March. Two weeks after losing his mother, Perez wrote a tribute to her on Instagram: "As sudden as this was, I have no regrets with my mom. I told her I loved her every chance I got. I shared my gratitude and sent flowers whenever I could. We said our sorries for all the times we hurt each other. I hugged her tightly at every goodbye like it could be our last. In some ways, I had been preparing for this day. I just didn't think it would come this soon."

Perez was a contestant on Season 22 of the US reality TV show The Bachelorette.