Faeldon 'constantly refuses' to attend Senate probe: Gordon

Detained former Customs Commissioner Nicanor Faeldon on Wednesday still refused to attend the Senate inquiry on alleged corruption at his former office amid allegations that he was involved.

"Just for the record, the sergeant-at-arms went to see Captain Faeldon and he constantly refuses to appear before the committee," said Sen. Richard Gordon, who leads the investigation as chair of the Senate blue ribbon committee.

The panel will continue detaining Faeldon for such "total disrespect of the Senate," Gordon said.

Faeldon had turned himself in on Sept. 11, opting to skip the Senate probe saying he would rather explain his side in court.

This after he was implicated in alleged corruption in the bureau following the bust of a P6.4-billion shabu shipment that had slipped past the Manila port in May.

Faeldon, who initially attended the hearings, snubbed the investigation after Sen. Panfilo Lacson accused him of accepting P100 million in "pasalubong" or welcome gift upon assuming his post.

Before this, fixer Mark Taguba claimed that some Bureau of Customs (BOC) officials pocketed millions in grease money for the release of questionable shipments.

Taguba's father Ruben, a former Customs policeman, said Wednesday that corruption at the BOC worsened several months after he gave Faeldon a list of alleged fixers and bribe-takers.