(Eagle News) — Appearing for the first time in the Senate blue ribbon committee hearings into the P6.4-billion drug shipment that slipped through Customs express lanes, and into corruption in the Bureau of Customs, retired Colonel Allen Capuyan denied all allegations against him.
Capuyan, the assistant general manager for security and emergency services of the Manila International Airport Authority, said he only met fixer Mark Taguba once, at a lunch “to meet a Customs personnel assigned at MIAA who can help in my intelligence-gathering.”
He said Jojo Bacud, “an underclass and acquaintance at the (Philippine Military Academy) being my battalion-mate,” invited him to the lunch.
Bacud is also being implicated in corruption activities in the BoC by Taguba, who said he was the “Big Brother” being referred to in text messages.
Capuyan allegedly became Taguba’s contact after the fixer’s supposed venture with Davao Councilor Nilo “Small” Abellera failed.
Capuyan was allegedly referred to as “BB” or Big Brother in texts.
“When I arrived, a certain Tita Nani and Noel were already there. (I did not expect them) since their names were not mentioned earlier,” Capuyan said.
He said a little later, Taguba arrived and was introduced to him.
“It was a quick conversation and introduction since there were other people (at) the table whom I needed to talk to about airport matters, and I had to leave immediately for another office meeting,” he said.
He said if he was not mistaken, it was Tita Nani who was talking about Taguba’s “concerns” at Customs.
He said “out of courtesy and respect (for) the people around,” he said he would try to “look into his concerns but with no commitments.”
“But certainly I was of no help because I’m not familiar with Customs operations and it’s not my official capacity to do so,” he said, denying he was a member of the alleged Davao Group engaged in corruption activities involving BoC officials and personnel.
He said he did, however, “request” Bacud sometime in June to come out with an “intelligence report” on the “entry of drugs in our harbor in the thought that the same pattern may occur in our airports.”
He said the report was submitted to the Department of Finance in July and later to the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency “even before the Senate/(House) investigation started.”