Lockerbie bombing conviction to be reviewed

The conviction of Abdelbaset al-Megrahi for the Lockerbie bombing is to be reviewed by the Scottish Criminal Cases Review Commission (SCCRC).

Megrahi was jailed in 2001 for the 1988 bombing of a passenger airplane over Lockerbie.

He lost an appeal against his conviction in 2002 but the SCCRC later recommended he be granted a second appeal.

He died in 2012 after being released on compassionate grounds in 2009.

SCCRC chief executive Gerard Sinclair said the commission now believes Megrahi dropped his appeal so he could return to Libya.

“Having considered all the available evidence the commission believes that Mr Megrahi, in abandoning his appeal, did so as he held a genuine and reasonable belief that such a course of action would result in him being able to return home to Libya, at a time when he was suffering from terminal cancer,” he said.

“On that basis, the commission has decided that it is in the interests of justice to accept the current application for a full review of his conviction.”

Former justice secretary Kenny MacAskill, who ordered Megrahi's release, told Holyrood he had played no part in Megrahi’s decision to drop the appeal.

“The SCCRC are an important part of the Scottish justice system and their investigations and procedures need to be respected,” he said.

“The decision to abandon his appeal was for Mr Megrahi and his advisors. Neither pressure was put upon him nor was the decision to release dependent on it.”

All 259 people on board the Pan Am flight from London to New York were killed when the Boeing 747 exploded, along with 11 on the ground.

There were six ground to Megrahi’s appeal, including doubts over both evidence and a witness.

Scottish Liberal Democrat justice spokesperson Liam McArthur MSP said: “This was the worst terrorist attack in Scottish history and there is clearly a high level of public interest in reviewing this case to assess whether it was properly resolved.

“It is to be hoped that the review commission can resolve this case in a way that delivers clarity and transparency for everyone involved, and that 15 years on from the original conviction, this can be expedited with some haste.”