I read about the Lucy Torres rumor
and to me that’s all that it is a rumor.
I don’t think it was ever really
confirmed. They say that they
have the tapes to prove it .
Sana nilabas na lang nila para matapos na.
I truly believe her. I truly believe
in her innocence. Feeling ko nga parang
ako lang yata naniniwala sa kanya.
But I do. Kasi kahit sino tanungin ko
they think she did it. They all hate her
they think that she’s perfect. I really don’t
understand that. Parang natutuwa
yung tao na puede din pala sya magkamali na
she’s just like the rest of us.
I’m sure that she is just like
the rest of us. Kaya nga lang
she’s married to Richard Gomez.
Im posting the Article of Lucy para naman
you can also read what she has to say
The shoplifting rumors
LOVE LUCY By Lucy Gomez
The Philippine STAR 01/30/2005
Over the weekend, I received an e-mail from Rizza,
my friend in Cebu. She forwarded me something she
received in her inbox, a story that was all about me.
It was entitled “Si Lucy naman” and I am sharing it
with you in full. Three separate e-mails were sent by
a Katherine, Lorraine and Raphael and they
forwarded it to no fewer than 33 e-mail addresses.
(By the way, I know their full names, e-mail
addresses and all the people they had forwarded
their messages to.) Please go through it first before
you go on reading the rest of my article.
Subject: Si Lucy na naman!
Narinig ko na itong story na ito shocking!
Now she shops daw with bodyguards following
her just to make sure na walang kukunin,
or kung meron man, binabalik na lang nila.
Nobody’s perfect talaga
Re: Fw: Tsismis naman tayo…
Si Lucy (asawa ni Richard),
nagsa-shopping sa Rustan’s. Tapos maya-maya,
nilapitan nung manager. Eto ang dialogue:
Manager: Ma’am, can we check your bag?
Lucy: No, this is my bag. It’s private property.
You don’t have the right to inspect it just
because you feel like it.
Manager: Actually, ma’am, since you’re on
our premises, we have every right to inspect it.
Bumigay na rin finally si Lucy.
At may nakitang perfume or wallet or watch
or something, di ko na maalala, dun sa bag niya.
Tapos tumawag yung manager kay Richard Gomez
at ibinalita na “Sir, we caught your wife shoplifting.”
At ang sagot ni Richard ay buntong-hininga, sabay,
“Shoplifting? Again?” So pinagbayad lang naman ang
mag-asawa, pero hindi na ginawan ng storya. At yan
daw ang dahilan kung bakit medyo mabait si
Richard Gomez sa ABS-CBN ngayon. Kasi ABS owns
Rustan’s or they have a relationship or something
(I really don’t pay attention all that well, hehe),
so kapag napikon ang ABS kay Richard Gomez
, pwede nila ilabas yung surveillance tape of Lucy
bagging the…umm, something. Ayos, we have
our very own Winona Ryder! =)
Client ko ang ABS-CBN and nakwento na rin
nila eto sa min. Take note, reliable ang source
ko kasi somebody from the top management
etong kausap namin. Klepto nga daw si Lucy.
Sayang ‘no?! She’s beautiful pa naman, wala
talagang perpektong tao.
I wrote about this very same rumor on June 6, 2004.
If you read that, you probably remember my writing
that I would always choose to count my blessings
rather than dwell on something as mean as that.
And I meant it sincerely. It may not have been easy
turning a blind eye and a deaf ear to a nasty story
but that was how I chose to fight the battle at that
time. Why dignify it with an answer? Why even
try to explain and convince people that
it simply did not happen?
Let it be said that I was hoping it would die a
natural death, as I was sure it would.
I was banking on how baseless it was anyway.
I had never been fond of fanfare and gimmickry
and the last thing I wanted to do was call attention
to myself.
I do not seek publicity and I definitely am not one
of those who believe that publicity, good or bad,
is still publicity. Perhaps the main reason
I did not acknowledge the rumor specifically
then was because I felt that by doing so, I would
only succeed in spreading it some more.
Kris Aquino, who was the first to inform me,
tried to persuade me to stare it in the face,
so to speak, not by writing about it reservedly
(as I admit I did) but by bravely acknowledgin
g it in addition to exploring my legal options.
The one thing she told me that continuously
reverberates in my mind until now is that
“An urban myth, when perpetuated,
will soon become a legend.”
And Kris was right all along. Not only was the
rumor perpetuated, it even became more
maliciously embellished along the way to
make it appear even more true.
I never realized people could be so mean.
Given the circumstances now, there is no reason
why I should be coy about it. It has spread far and
wide and by coming out to talk about it openly
I am, in a way, also acknowledging the severity of
the issue and coming to terms with what it actually
is: Pure character assassination. The only difference
then and now is that what was initially talked about
in whispers and hidden behind guessing games and
blind items is now declared. And all fingers are quick
to point at me.
There seems to be a concerted effort to hurt and
crush me, for what reason I really don’t know.
Perhaps I may never find out. All I know is that
although it is hurtful, offensive, and frustrating
all at the same time, this is not the kind of thing
that will kill my spirit.
Over the past few months, the same rumor that
started as a blind item in The Manila Standard
has grown incredibly by leaps and bounds and
the original story bloomed and grew to include
specifics. Whereas it started with me supposedly
shoplifting a Bulgari watch at Rustan’s, it also went
on to include shoplifting sprees at Tiffany
(still at Rustan’s). And if you go back to the e-mail
on this page, I apparently was also found
with a wallet and perfume. Dead on,
caught in the act. Why a wallet and perfume?
Are those not affordable?
The story goes on. Apparently, talk has it that
I shoplift not because I want to but because I need to.
The story, whatever the version, ultimately concludes
that I am a kleptomaniac, that my husband has
checked me into rehab for this behavioral disorder,
and that there was a conscious attempt on our
part to whitewash the whole incident.
If stories are to be believed, Richard
even paid off Rustan’s a handsome sum just so they
will keep the whole thing away from the prying eyes
of media and cover up the real story.
All this talk started to travel through the grapevine
in January 2004. It has been a year since.
Sadly for me, it has not died down.
My friend Mons was in a gathering and this
shoplifting story came up. Mons came to my defense
by saying that there was no truth to it, that she even
got to talk to the manager of Rustan’s –
even the owners themselves – all of whom denied
the supposed incident. She finally decided to rest her
case when she realized that although the people she w
as with acknowledged that it most probably was not
true, they still would rather believe that it was.
How else could you make heads or tails about some
of the things said in that gathering? ”
It’s probably not true, but hayaan mo na.
At least it is nice knowing that Lucy is not perfect,
and that God is fair, after all.” Another one added, ”
Of course, she will deny she is a klepto. I
t is a disease and Lucy herself is not aware that
she is afflicted with it.
” Another friend of mine was at the parlor
where two well-dressed matrons were passing
off the story as Bible truth to whoever cared
enough to hear. “It is such a comfort knowing that
Lucy actually has a defect. Poor thing. But at least
no one is perfect pala talaga.
” Mayor JV Ejercito was at a gathering
and an ABS-CBN newscaster reportedly told JV:
“Mayor, alam mo ba that Lucy is a klepto?”
Many different people have also told me that a
relative of the owners of Rustan’s has been
confirming to people that the incident really
did happen. It makes people believe because
she is, after all, married to a Tantoco.
And Rustan’s is owned by the Tantocos.
A good friend of hers though came to her defense
and said that in fairness, whenever she is asked
she just chooses to neither deny nor confirm anything.
And that probably they just take her silence as a
confirmation and assume that it really is true.
Otherwise daw, how difficult can it be to say it isn’t so?
My friend who gets treatments at Marie France,
Makati, took me out to lunch before the holidays,
oblivious that I already heard that rumor as far
back as January of last year. It wasn’t until we
were almost about to start dessert that she really
took on a serious, somber tone. She finally said
that she was gathering enough guts to tell me that
her Marie France attendants were discussing
what a sad thing it was for someone like me to
turn out to be a klepto. My friend said that it wasn’t
true but the two therapists insisted that it really
was because earlier, they had serviced
two Rustan’s executives who told them
that they would actually be nervous whenever
I walk through the doors of Rustan’s because
they knew I would again be shoplifting.
Oh yes, and that these executives had
everything on tape, too.
Speaking of surveillance tapes, Karen Davila
supposedly has it in her possession and that
the station she belongs to is just waiting for
the right time to air it. Although I already
know what Karen has to say about it
(Richard was able to speak to her and
told her that if they really had a tape
to please go ahead and show it ASAP.
Perhaps doing so would really clear
the air and solve the mystery,
if you can call it that.) I am not in the
position to share with you what they
talked about. It’s best that it comes
straight from Karen’s mouth.
Suffice it to say that Karen
has denied commenting on it
on her radio program , denied too that
she was given the Rustan’s surveillance tape.
Ek Channel, a showbiz-oriented talk show that airs
every Saturday afternoon on ABS-CBN, featured
re-enacted segments for two consecutive Saturdays
detailing the crime I supposedly committed.
Although these were blind items on both occasions,
the clues they gave out apparently sounded enough
like me to make people I knew who happened to be
watching call and say that I was being maliciously
referred to. After the airing, a source from the station
told me that although they admittedly really had no
proof, the people behind the show still chose to air
the segments because it made for good copy.
In contrast, The Buzz (still an ABS-CBN show)
never touched on the topic. Kris, bless her,
was decent enough to fight for a factual approach
over and above a malicious gossipy one that was
purely based on hearsay. She told the people on her
show, most of whom insisted that there
really was a Rustan’s surveillance tape catching me
red-handed, that although she knew for a fact that
there was no truth to it she will go ahead and run the
story if and only if the show’s staff could produce the
tape to support their claim.
No one could produce a tape. No story was run.
And I have Kris to thank for that. What is even
more touching is that she did that on her own,
and I just found out about it by chance much,
much later.
Other friends of mine who were vacationing in the
States got wind of the rumor while they were there.
At a gathering, a gay employee from Rustan’s
was announcing to one and all that I was caught
shoplifting, and that all the employees from the
department store were called to a meeting and
informed of the incident. Then he delightedly
laughed and said “Ang saya, saya, hindi pala
talaga siya perfect. She really cannot have it all!
God is good!”
I lead a very normal life, I hardly ever go out,
and that is probably not dramatic enough for others.
That is probably why they have to spice it up by
concocting incredible incidents. I feel no need to
enumerate the reasons why the shoplifter they
created in their minds could not be me.
I don’t have to explain myself. My conscience
is clear and I know that all this will pass,
eventually. Maybe not anytime now,
not anytime soon. But it will – that much I believe.
If at all, what I really find hurtful about all
this is that there actually are people who
would happily embrace an untruth just to
make them feel better about their own lives.
Must you fault me for having what you think
is a perfect life? I never passed myself off as
perfect, neither did I ever rub on anyone’s face
that I lead a perfect life. Not that it should matter,
really, but I do not have a perfect life.
I do, however , have a very happy one,
but it is not without its share
of heartaches. Is that fair enough for you?
Happiness, more than being a choice,
is a blessing I enjoy. Must I be punished
and hated for that?
All that said, I dare those who claim to have
the Rustan’s surveillance tape to send it to
media. Make hundreds of copies, if you want,
and send them all out. If, for some reason,
you conveniently ” lost” the tape,
present your witnesses – all those people you
know who strongly allege that they know for
a fact that I did it, or that they were actually
there when I did it.
Don’t just say “basta, a reliable source told me…”
Name your reliable source. Field them to the
tri-media. I’m sure the showbiz talk shows
will be more than happy to interview them
live on their show. And please do it soon.
Maybe then we will really get to the bottom
of this and find out the truth.
Play this game fairly. You accuse me –
now support your claim with facts,
not just with hearsay. Most of you probably
just heard about it from a friend
who in turn also just heard it from
a friend’s friend but by perpetuating
the rumor, you, too, share in the lie.
The world is round, what goes around
does come around and I have seen that
happen enough times to appreciate it as
a fact of life. Meanwhile, I anchor my
strength, as always, on a God greater
than even the nastiest rumor
that could ever be said about me.
There lies my peace of mind. And at the
end of each day,I sleep well knowing
that I have wronged no one,
stepped on no one. I really hope
you can say the same for yourself.
Life may not be fair, but God is.
