US judge delays Lockerbie bombing trial over new evidence

WASHINGTON, 25 AUGUST 2026 —

A US federal judge delayed the trial of a Libyan man charged with building the bomb that destroyed Pan Am Flight 103 in 1988, citing newly discovered evidence defence lawyers want to examine.

Jury selection for the trial of Abu Agila Mohammad Masud Kheir al-Marimi in Washington had been due to start on Wednesday, but US District Judge Dabney Friedrich rescheduled the hearing after prosecutors disclosed new material to the defence on Saturday. She set a September 1 status conference to determine how the evidence affects the case.

Al-Marimi, a former Libyan intelligence colonel, is accused of making the bomb that killed 270 people when it detonated over Lockerbie, Scotland. The blast destroyed the plane and wreckage damaged homes on the ground. Citizens of 21 countries died, including 190 Americans.

Prosecutors allege he acted under orders from then Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi and that he smuggled a suitcase bomb via Malta and Frankfurt to London, where it was loaded onto the flight. Al-Marimi, now in his mid-70s, faces life imprisonment if convicted on two counts of destruction of an aircraft resulting in death.

The case marks the first time the US has brought charges over the bombing. Two other Libyan agents were tried in the Netherlands by a Scottish court in 2000; one was convicted and later died in Libya protesting his innocence, while the other was acquitted.

Defence lawyers told Judge Friedrich the new evidence required time to investigate to meet “constitutional and ethical obligations.” The judge did not specify what the evidence was or how it could affect the trial timeline.

Related: Washington