Libyan Charged in 1988 Lockerbie Plane Bombing Is in FBI Custody - The New York Times

Politics|Libyan Operative Charged successful 1988 Lockerbie Bombing Is successful F.B.I. Custody

WASHINGTON — A Libyan quality operative charged successful the 1988 bombing of an American jetliner implicit Lockerbie, Scotland, was arrested by the F.B.I. and being extradited to the United States to look prosecution for 1 of the deadliest violent attacks successful American history, officials said connected Sunday.

The apprehension of the operative, Abu Agila Mohammad Mas’ud, was the culmination of a decades-long effort by the Justice Department to prosecute him. In 2020, Attorney General William P. Barr announced transgression charges against Mr. Mas’ud, accusing him of gathering the explosive device utilized successful the bombing of Pan Am Flight 103, which killed 270 passengers, including 190 Americans.

Mr. Mas’ud faces 2 transgression counts, including demolition of an craft resulting successful death. He was being held astatine a Libyan situation for unrelated crimes erstwhile the Justice Department unsealed the charges against him 2 years ago. It is unclear however the U.S. authorities negotiated the extradition of Mr. Mas’ud.

Mr. Mas’ud’s suspected relation successful the Lockerbie bombing received caller scrutiny successful a three-part documentary connected “Frontline” connected PBS successful 2015. The bid was written and produced by Ken Dornstein, whose member was killed successful the attack. Mr. Dornstein learned that Mr. Mas’ud was being held successful a Libyan situation and adjacent obtained pictures of him arsenic part of his investigation.

“If there’s 1 idiosyncratic inactive live who could archer the communicative of the bombing of Flight 103, and enactment to remainder decades of unanswered questions astir however precisely it was carried retired — and wherefore — it’s Mr. Mas’ud,” Mr. Dornstein wrote successful an email aft learning Mr. Mas’ud would yet beryllium prosecuted successful the United States. “The question, I guess, is whether he’s yet prepared to speak.”

After Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi, Libya’s leader, was ousted from power, Mr. Mas’ud confessed to the bombing successful 2012, telling a Libyan instrumentality enforcement authoritative that helium was down the attack. Once investigators learned astir the confession successful 2017, they interviewed the Libyan authoritative who had elicited it, starring to charges.

Even though extradition would let Mr. Mas’ud to basal trial, ineligible experts person expressed doubts astir whether his confession, obtained successful situation successful war-torn Libya, would beryllium admissible arsenic evidence.

Mr. Mas’ud, who was calved successful Tunisia but has Libyan citizenship, was the 3rd idiosyncratic charged successful the bombing. Two others, Abdel Basset Ali al-Megrahi and Al-Amin Khalifa Fhimah, were charged successful 1991, but American efforts to prosecute them ran aground erstwhile Libya declined to nonstop them to the United States oregon Britain to basal trial.

Instead, the Libyan authorities agreed to a proceedings successful the Netherlands nether Scottish law. Mr. Fhimah was acquitted and Mr. al-Megrahi was convicted successful 2001 and sentenced to beingness successful prison.

In 2009, Scottish officials released Mr. al-Megrahi due to the fact that helium had prostate cancer, contempt the strenuous objections of the families of the victims and of American officials, including President Barack Obama. Mr. al-Megrahi died successful 2012; his household posthumously appealed his condemnation successful Scotland, but last twelvemonth a sheet of judges refused to overturn it.

Prosecutors accidental that Mr. Mas’ud played a cardinal relation successful the bombing, traveling to Malta and delivering the suitcase that contained the weaponry utilized successful the attack. In Malta, Mr. Megrahi and Mr. Fhimah instructed Mr. Mas’ud to acceptable the timer connected the instrumentality truthful it would stroke up portion the level was successful the aerial the adjacent day, prosecutors said.

On the greeting of Dec. 21, 1988, Mr. Megrahi and Mr. Fhimah met Mr. Mas’ud astatine the airdrome successful Malta, wherever helium turned implicit the suitcase. Prosecutors said Mr. Fhimah enactment the suitcase connected a conveyor belt, yet ending up connected Pan Am Flight 103.

Mr. Mas’ud’s sanction surfaced doubly successful 1988, adjacent earlier the bombing took place. In October, a Libyan defector told the C.I.A. helium had seen Mr. Mas’ud astatine the Malta airdrome with Mr. Megrahi, saying the brace had passed done connected a violent operation. Malta served arsenic a superior launching constituent for Libya to initiate specified attacks, the informant told the agency. That December, the time earlier the Pan Am bombing, the informant told the C.I.A. that the brace had again passed done Malta. Nearly different twelvemonth passed earlier the bureau asked the informant astir the bombing.

But investigators ne'er pursued Mr. Mas’ud successful earnest until Mr. Megrahi’s proceedings years later, lone for the Libyans to importune that Mr. Mas’ud did not exist. Mr. Megrahi besides claimed helium did not cognize Mr. Mas’ud.