Derek Ramsay comes to the defense of his friend Pernilla Sjöö

Derek Ramsay has come to defend his friend, Pernilla Sjöö, from all the bashing following Andi Eigenmann's cryptic messages last weekend.

In an interview with Ogie Diaz upload on YouTube Wednesday, Derek said he and his wife Ellen Adarna have been in touch with Pernilla since news about her matching tattoos with Philmar Alipayo broke.

"I just got off the phone [with her]. She's always in tears. I'm calling her every day. We've calling her every day because every day we turn on our social media and there is something new, something nasty being said," Derek said.

In the 20-minute video, the actor gave his opinions about the matter, described his friendship with Pernilla as close, and said she is someone he 100% trusts.

When asked by Ogie to confirm if the posts attributed to Pernilla were hers, Derek said, "Yes, that's the thing. It's not even hers. Her account is deactivated."

"Pern is not opening her mouth. That's how much respect she's giving the friendship."  

GMA News Online was among the media outlets that picked up on the alleged statements from Pernilla. It has since deactivated the story.

According to the actor, the photographer has been "hiding and afraid for her life because she's getting threats. She's afraid for her family who lives abroad. Now she's getting blamed, even for Philmar's first relationship, when she had nothing to do with it," he said.

"She's a very private person. Her mental health is so affected," Derek continued, adding the issue has gotten so out of hand, even Pernilla's status is also being questioned. "Imagine for her to go through all that? Her papers are being investigated. But she's legitimate. Her papers are all straight. She's a permanent resident" Derek said.

Over the weekend, Andi Eigenmann posted a series of cryptic messages on Instagram that fueled rumors about her breakup from her fiancé Philmar Alipayo and third party involvement.

She later cleared Philmar of cheating allegations but opened up about the woman who got matching tattoos with her fiancé.

According to Andi, she reached out to the woman to get her explanation but "she chose to completely ignore me."

Andi did not drop any names but netizens were quick to speculate it was Swedish photographer Pernilla Sjoo.

In Ogie's video, Derek revealed Pernilla is happily in a relationship, confirmed she did receive a message from Andi following the tattoo incident, and clarified Pernilla did not ignore her. Instead, she responded the following day.

"I think after the tattoo, there was a text from Andi that said 'WAH'," Derek narrated. "I don't know what that means. I think she made an attempt or she texted [but] Pern was busy working. Pern replied the following day. Ayaw na niya. She reached out again, 'I'm willing talk.' Wala nang sagot si Andi," he said.

According to Derek, he told off Pernilla about the whole tattoo thing. "Sabi ko sa kanya, mali yung ginawa mo sa sa tattoo, pero naiintindihan ko it's a cultural difference. Because she's not from here," Derek continued.

"She's willing to accept that and to apologize for that [because] she understands that. But her intent was not to hurt Andi. Her intent was not to steal her husband. Her intent was not to betray Andi," Derek said.

"Pern feels bad about the tattoo thing and she reached out. She did. She reached out to apologize for that," he said.

"Pern realizes her mistake there, even if it was cultural difference. She understands that she was wrong. She wanted to talk. She messaged and she reached out. She also messaged Philmar. Siya pa humingi kay Philmar 'please, you need to make a statement about this'," Derek said.

He admitted to being very upset about the situation "because again, I'm mentally strong. She is not. What if she takes her life? She can't handle the bashing. She's a private person," Derek said, adding she was someone he knew, and someone he trusts with his kid and his wife.

"She hasn't been to work. She doesn't feel safe to go outside because maybe the fans of Andi and Philmar will attack her. She's getting messages left and right na ahas siya," he continued.

"Isang tunay na kaibigan si Pernilla," Derek said. "Ako bilang isang kaibigan nakikita ko yung kaibigan [ko], nasisira na, umiiyak na nababastos na — pati yung boyfriend nasasaktan na," he added, saying he is doing his duty as a friend "to put the truth out there for people to see."

Meanwhile, GMA News Online sought a comment from Andi Eigenman, who preferred not to be quoted for this story.

Earlier this week, Philmar posted a video with Andi and their kids, saying "OK na kami."

You can watch Derek Ramsay's interview here.

— LA, GMA Integrated News