A federal judge on Monday postponed the U.S. trial of Abu Agila Mohammad Mas’ud Kheir Al-Marimi, a former Libyan intelligence official accused of building the bomb that destroyed Pan Am Flight 103 in 1988, killing 270 people. The decision came after prosecutors disclosed new evidence to the defense over the weekend, prompting attorneys to request more time for examination.
Jury selection was scheduled to begin Wednesday for the federal trial in Washington, D.C. This would have been the first trial in the U.S. for the bombing that occurred on Dec. 21, 1988. U.S. District Judge Dabney Friedrich cited the complex nature of the case, the newly discovered evidence, and the defense's need to determine how best to proceed as reasons for the delay.
Al-Marimi faces two counts of destruction of an aircraft resulting in death and could face a maximum penalty of life in prison if convicted. Prosecutors allege that Al-Marimi, now in his mid-70s, carried out the bombing under the direction of then-Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi. He worked for the Libyan intelligence service from approximately 1973 to 2011.
The bombing occurred when Flight 103, en route from London Heathrow Airport to John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York, was flying at 31,000 feet over Lockerbie, Scotland. A bomb in the plane's forward cargo area exploded 38 minutes after takeoff. All 259 passengers and crew members were killed, along with 11 people on the ground in Lockerbie. Among the victims were 190 Americans and 43 citizens of the United Kingdom, as well as 35 Syracuse University students.
Prosecutors believe Al-Marimi transported a suitcase containing the bomb from Malta to Frankfurt, Germany, and then to London, where it was loaded onto Flight 103. Two other Libyan intelligence agents were tried by Scottish judges in the Netherlands in 2000; one was convicted and the other acquitted. Al-Marimi's indictment in the U.S. in 2020 aimed to identify the bombmaker.
Judge Friedrich has scheduled a Sept. 1 hearing to discuss the status of the case.