Lockerbie bombing trial delayed over new evidence

A US federal judge has postponed the trial of Abu Agila Mohammad Masud, the Libyan man accused of making the bomb that destroyed Pan Am Flight 103 over Scotland in 1988 and killed 270 people.

Judge Dabney Friedrich delayed the trial on Monday, citing "newly discovered evidence" and "evidence located in other countries".

Jury selection had been due to start on Wednesday. No new trial date was set, but a court hearing was scheduled for September 1 to discuss the status of the case.

Masud has pleaded not guilty to charges related to the destruction of an aircraft resulting in death. If convicted, he could face life in prison.

Pan Am Flight 103 was bound for New York when it was blown up 38 minutes after taking off from London. The main fuselage fell on the Scottish town of Lockerbie, and debris spread over a wide area.

The bombing killed all 259 people on board, including 190 Americans, and 11 people on the ground. It is described as the deadliest-ever terror attack in Britain.

Masud has been in US custody since 2022, after being extradited from Libya. He allegedly worked as an intelligence operative for the regime of Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi between 1973 and 2011.

Only one person has so far been convicted over the bombing. Former Libyan intelligence officer Abdelbaset al-Megrahi spent seven years in a Scottish prison after his conviction in 2001. He died in Libya in 2012 while maintaining his innocence.