Milania Giudice’s Best Friend Victoria Zardoya’s Cause of Death Revealed
More details about Victoria Zardoya’s final moments have come to light.
Three months after the 20-year-old suffered a fatal fall while touring the Fort Dade ruins in Florida, authorities shared that her blood tested positive for ketamine, according to the medical examiner report obtained by TMZ Nov. 3.
The report also revealed that Zardoya’s blood sample—collected shortly after her July 24 fall—contained norketamine, which is produced when the body breaks down ketamine.
Zardoya’s toxicology results additionally showed that the University of Tampa student—best friends since childhood with Teresa Giudice’s daughter Milania Giudice—had alcohol and etomidate, a brief-acting medication used for sedation, in her system, per the report.
The medical examiner did not indicate when or why the drugs entered Zardoya’s system or if they contributed to her fall, according to TMZ.
Authorities previously confirmed that Zardoya’s death—ruled an accident—was caused by craniocerebral trauma, with the recent autopsy report documenting the skull fractures and brain bleed she sustained, per TMZ.
In the aftermath of Zardoya’s fall, friend Victoria Silberbusch, who was at the Egmont Key site during the fatal incident, gave insight into the moment when she said “everything changed” for their group of friends on vacation.
“At first, we thought Victoria had fallen only one level,” Silberbusch wrote on Instagram July 26. “We ran to the edge, calling out to her, but quickly realized she had fallen much farther than we first believed.”
Victoria Zardoya/Instagram
As members of the group “immediately began climbing down” to help Zardoya, she said others called 911 and helped first responders locate them.
“We stayed with Victoria and held her, trying to make her as comfortable as possible while we waited for first responders to arrive,” Silberbusch added. “Paramedics responded by boat, and a medical helicopter was eventually able to transport her to the hospital after an incredibly difficult rescue.”
Milania, 20, has since held a celebration of life for Zardoya, who she said was a friend who could “walk into a room and light up the entire place.”
“Victoria was genuinely the life of the party,” Milania wrote on Instagram Sept. 10. “She loved being surrounded by her friends, having fun, listening to music, going to concerts, going to Tampa, and making memories.”
And after a friendship that stood the test of time, she added, “We got to grow up together, and I will always be grateful for every memory we made.”
For a look back at Milania’s friendship with Zardoya over the years, keep reading…
Joe Giudice/Instagram
Like Family
In a throwback pic, Milania Giudice hung out at home with her friend Victoria Zardoya and her dad Joe Giudice, who grieved the loss of his daughter’s best friend in July 2026, writing on Instagram, “You were like a daughter to me. I watched you grow up with my daughter Milania. We were neighbors for years, and you became part of our family. I can’t believe you’re gone.”
Victoria Zardoya/Instagram
Glitter, Glam, Giudice
Giudice and Zardoya coordinated their festival ‘fits during the Breakaway Music Festival in Tampa in April 2026. The besties posed alongside their friends and danced until the sun set.
Milania Giudice/Instagram
Eager to Embrace Easter
Giudice and Zardoya had their arms wrapped around each other as they soaked up the sun together on Easter Sunday 2026 in Tampa, Fla., where they attended the University of Tampa together.
Victoria Zardoya/Instagram
Bad to the Bone
The pair were all smiles as they attended a costume party in November 2025 with friends dressed in caveman attire,, matching their fur boots and bone-inspired jewelry.
Milania Giudice/Instagram
Pony Up
Giudice and Zardoya wore their New Jersey best as they attended the Haskell Stakes horse-racing tournament in July 2025.
Milania Giudice/Instagram
The Good Ones
The BFFs embraced their love for each other on Valentine’s Day 2024, matching their red tops and posing together with friends at a party. Giudice captioned her Cupid-inspired Instagram post, “Keep the good ones close.”
Victoria Zardoya/Instagram
The Simple Life
Zardoya and Giudice’s friendship was on par with any famous pairing, including Paris Hilton and Nicole Richie. Indeed, Zardoya celebrated her bestie’s February 2023 birthday with pictures from some of their many vacations together, writing in the caption, “It’s my best friends birthday. I love you. The Paris to my Nicole 4L.”
Victoria Zardoya/Instagram
Global Girlfriends
These two were jetsetters through and through and never found a body of water they didn’t love, including the coastal waters of Jamaica, where they visited in September 2022.
Victoria Zardoya/Instagram
Matching Monochrome
Their style matched their sisterhood, as Giudice and Zardoya sported coordinated black-and-white swimsuits during a trip to Cancún, Mexico, in August 2021.
Victoria Zardoya/Instagram
Sisters For Life
Zardoya’s friendship with Giudice was on display yet again in her February 2020 birthday tribute, as she detailed their bond in the caption.
“Happy birthday to the girl who has never left my side,” Zardoya wrote on Instagram. “No matter what happens i will always love you like the triplet i never had. cheers love u m money.”
Instagram/Milania Giudice
Never on Thin Ice
Besties from day one, Zardoya smiled with Giudice at the ice rink in a throwback picture that the Real Housewives of New Jersey alum shared after the news of her friend’s death.
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