Lacson back from US

Controversial Sen. Panfilo Lacson arrived early last night from the US via Hong Kong with a bagfull of documents which he said would clear him of accusations of money laundering.

"All I can tell you is that I went to the US to get the documents that would prove my detractors are lying," Lacson said on arrival at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport on board Cathay Pacific Flight 903.

Lacson claimed the documents he acquired from the US would disprove that he had multimillion-dollar accounts in several banks in the US and Canada.

"I went purposely to the US to get these documents to prove to my detractors that they were lying," he said but refused to give further details.

"You just wait until I present them to the Senate committees conducting an investigation on the charges hurled against me by Col. Victor Corpus," he said, referring to his nemesis, the chief of military intelligence.

Lacson, whose only luggage was a black bag, was in casual blue jeans and blue rubber sneakers and was accompanied by businessman Jerome Tang.

Lacson and Tang departed for the US on Sept. 9 , also via Hong Kong, where he supposedly met with a Hong Kong police detective and other possible witnesses to testify against Corpus and his star witness, former police undercover agent Mary "Rosebud" Ong.

According to Ong, Lacson went to Hong Kong to convince senior detective Ron Abbot to appear before the Senate to refute her charge that Lacson was involved in drug trafficking, money laundering, kidnapping and multiple murder.

Camp Crame sources said Tang also accompanied the senator sometime in June shortly after a joint police-military team went to Hong Kong and the US to gather evidence on Lacson’s alleged hidden wealth.