Suspect in 1988 Lockerbie bombing now in US custody
Authorities in Scotland said Sunday that the Libyan man suspected of making the bomb that destroyed a passenger plane over Lockerbie, Scotland in 1988 is now in U.S. custody.
U.S. officials confirmed to CBS News on Sunday that Abu Agila Mohammad Masud was transferred out of Libyan custody and is headed to the Washington, D.C., area.
Scotland's Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service said in a statement: "The families of those killed in the Lockerbie bombing have been told that the suspect Abu Agela Mas'ud Kheir Al-Marimi is in U.S. custody."
Pan Am flight 103 exploded over Lockerbie on Dec. 21, 1988, leaving 270 people dead. It remains the deadliest terror attack on British soil. Twelve of the passengers were from Pennsylvania, including seven from the Pittsburgh area.
In 2001, Abdelbaset al-Megrahi was convicted of bombing the flight. He was the only person convicted over the attack. He was released early from prison in 2009 and died three years later.
"Scottish prosecutors and police, working with U.K. government and U.S. colleagues, will continue to pursue this investigation, with the sole aim of bringing those who acted along with al-Megrahi to justice," the Crown Office added.
Masud had been serving a separate 10-year sentence in Libya for bombmaking. The U.S. announced charges against him in 2020 on the 32nd anniversary of the attack and sought his extradition. The criminal complaint was largely based on a confession Masud made to Libyan authorities in 2012, as well as his travel records, which allegedly tie him to the crime.
Margaret Brennan, Andy Triay and Clare Hymes contributed reporting.