Federal Judge Postpones Trial of Former Libyan Intelligence Official in Pan Am Flight 103 Bombing Case

A federal judge has delayed the trial of a former Libyan intelligence officer, charged in the 1988 Pan Am Flight 103 bombing, due to new evidence emerging. Jury selection for Abu Agila Mohammad Mas’ud Kheir Al-Marimi’s trial was set to start Wednesday in Washington, D.C. This marks the first U.S. trial concerning the December 21, 1988, bombing over Lockerbie, Scotland, killing 270 people, mostly Americans.

U.S. District Judge Dabney Friedrich did not detail the nature of the evidence. Al-Marimi’s attorneys stated prosecutors revealed this information last Saturday, stressing their obligation to investigate it thoroughly. Laura Koenig, defense attorney and assistant federal public defender, chose not to comment further when asked by The Associated Press.

The judge scheduled a hearing on September 1 in Washington to assess the case status. Friedrich cited the case’s complexity, the new evidence, and the need for a strong defense strategy as reasons for postponing the trial. Al-Marimi faces charges in the U.S. for constructing the bomb that destroyed the aircraft.

A blast occurred 38 minutes after Flight 103 took off from London Heathrow Airport, while at 31,000 feet over Lockerbie. The bomb in the forward cargo area killed all 259 passengers and crew, along with 11 Lockerbie residents. The wreckage demolished a city block. Victims hailed from 21 countries, with 190 Americans and 43 UK citizens among them. Among the passengers were 35 Syracuse University students returning from a semester abroad.

Kara Weipz, president of Victims of Pan Am Flight 103, expressed her organization’s lack of information regarding the evidence causing the trial delay. Her brother, Richard Monetti, was among the Syracuse students who perished. She described the postponement as a surprise, noting that some victims’ families were preparing to attend the trial.

“At the same time, for almost 38 years we’ve been seeking the truth of what happened,” Weipz said. “If that’s what this is, then that’s a good thing, and this delay is worth it. … It’s important to hear all the facts.”

Prosecutors claim Al-Marimi and others orchestrated the bombing under Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi’s orders. Gadhafi was deposed and killed during a 2011 civil war.

In 2000, two other Libyan intelligence operatives faced trial by Scottish judges on a former U.S. military base in the Netherlands. The tribunal convicted one and acquitted another, leaving the bombmaker’s identity unknown for years. Now in his mid-70s, Al-Marimi is charged with two counts of an aircraft’s destruction leading to death, facing life imprisonment if convicted.

Al-Marimi worked with Libyan intelligence between 1973 and 2011, reaching the rank of colonel, per prosecutors. Investigators believe he delivered a suitcase containing the bomb to co-conspirators at Malta Airport. The suitcase traveled to Frankfurt, Germany, and onward to London, where it was loaded onto Flight 103.