MANILA, Philippines – Nicanor Faeldon, the embattled former chief of the Bureau of Customs (BOC), was moved to the Pasay City Jail on Tuesday, January 30.

“Former Customs Commissioner Nicanor Faeldon was transferred to BJMP custody around 12:05 noontime today,” the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) said in a statement.

According to BJMP spokesman Senior Jail Inspector Xavier Solda, Faeldon will be treated the same way as the almost 1,000 other inmates.

“He will be living with other inmates, no special treatment,” Solda said in a statement.

The Pasay City Jail is 840% congested, according to the latest data from the BJMP.

The Senate sent Faeldon to the jail on Tuesday after he was cited in contempt by the Senate blue ribbon committee, headed by Senator Richard Gordon.

The former BOC chief was first detained at the Senate last September after he snubbed the probe into the P6.4-billion shabu shipment smuggled from China.

No help from SC yet

Faeldon also continues to await the decision of the Supreme Court (SC) on the petition he filed last January 22, seeking his release from detention.

A source from the High Court said SC justices did not tackle Faeldon’s petition during their en banc session on Tuesday.

“It was not immediately raffled last Monday so it was not included in the agenda,” the source said.

In Faeldon’s petition, he questioned the legality of his detention, saying that “legislative contempt” is not enough reason to deprive him of liberty for more than 130 days.

Citing his recent appointment to the Office of Civil Defense (OCD), Faeldon also argued that he would not be able to perform his duties locked up, be it at the Senate or at the Pasay City Jail. – Rappler.com