MANILA - Antonia Marina "Tara" Santelices, the Ateneo graduate who was shot in the head in a jeepney holdup incident last year, passed away on Monday. She was 23.

According to her mother, Anne Santelices, Tara was brought to the hospital last Thursday due to high fever caused by an infection. She suffered a cardiac arrest at 4:00 a.m. on Monday.

"Nagkalagnat, sinugod namin sa ospital. Di na rin siguro niya kinayanan. Bumigay yung kidneys niya," she told ABS-CBN News. At present, Tara's remains lie in Arlington Funeral Homes in Pasig City.

On her 23rd birthday last August, Santelices was shot in the head while on board a jeepney passing Imelda Avenue in Cainta, Rizal. She stirred to life 7 months later, but continued to stay in the hospital due to her fragile condition.

By June, Santelices was brought home where her family and loved ones attended to her.

"I did the best that I could. I told her I loved her and thanked her for everything she did to me. It was painful seeing her suffering," said Lila Santelices, Tara's sister.

The Philippine National Police in Cainta has already closed its investigation into the shooting incident, saying that the suspect, Orlando del Rosario, already died in an encounter with police authorities. But according to witnesses, del Rosario was not the one who shot Santelices that night.

Given this, members of the Santelices family said they will ask the National Bureau of Investigation to reopen Tara's case after her burial.

"Ayusin namin itong burol niya. Pag natapos na lahat ito, pabubuksan namin ang kaso," Anne Santelices said.

Fellow Ateneans help Tara

Last March, Santelices' coursemates in Political Science from the Ateneo de Manila University organized a benefit gig to cover for her medical expenses, which have reached P2.6 million.

Called "Tara! Let's Rock! A Benefit Show for Tara Santelices," the event featured local bands and artists such as Twitch, Empty Siren Boulevard, Astrojuan, Ephesus, Boy Elroy, The Out of Body Special, and Miguel Escueta.

"She's a fellow student, a fellow batchmate, and a coursemate at that. And our course taught us to work for justice, to work for others. So me, Vince (Tablante), and Francis (Rodriguez), along with Manna (Leano), a friend of ours organized this event. Manna's not from Ateneo but she worked for Gawad Kalinga, so she also knows the true value of helping someone," Ice dela Cruz, one of the organizers, told abs-cbnNEWS.com last March.

Santelices herself is part of the music scene as guitarist of her band called Saffron Speedway. She is also half of electronica duo Stormy with Joee Mejias, the last friend Santelices was with during the holdup incident.

"When she was still active in the music scene, she agreed to help me with events. So this is like kind of giving back," dela Cruz said.

Santelices is also a member of a non-governmental organization called Upland Marketing, a small microfinance NGO which helps women put up businesses in the rural areas. According to dela Cruz, she also has dreams of working for the United Nations.

"We're still young, we should have a chance to fulfill our dreams," she said. -- With a report from Ina Reformina, ABS-CBN News