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Al-Marimi: Outrage as prosecutors are not seeking DEATH penalty for Lockerbie bombing suspect

The three charges against Al-Marimi include 'destruction of aircraft resulting in death', which carries the death penalty

WASHINGTON, DC: Abu Agila Mohammad Mas’ud Kheir Al-Marimi, 71, one of the Lockerbie bombing suspects, appeared at a federal court hearing on Monday, December 12 in Washington, DC while grumbling about the flu. He was formally charged with terrorism in the horrific December 1988 attack. The three charges against him include “destruction of aircraft resulting in death,” which carries the death penalty. But prosecutors told the court they would not pursue the death penalty because it was not constitutionally available at the time of the bombing.

US Magistrate Judge Robin Meriweather told Al-Marimi about the criminal counts against him and read him his rights. However, the 71-year-old did not enter a plea and said that he wanted to retain his own counsel. He also told Meriweather he “took some medication and I have some flu,” an interpreter recounted. The judge gave him time till December 27 to retain a lawyer. The brief hearing was the first time a suspect in the case has faced justice on US soil.

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The former Libyan intelligence agent allegedly flew to Malta with a suitcase bomb to meet his co-conspirators, who instructed him to set a timer on the device ahead of the attack. According to the criminal complaint, the alleged terrorists placed it on the conveyer belt where it was eventually sent to Frankfort before being transferred to the December 21, 1988, flight. All 259 people aboard including 190 Americans, as well as 11 people on the ground in the small Scottish town died from the explosion on the London to New York-bound plane. 

In 2012, after Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi's regime was dissolved, Al-Marimi, who happened to be a top bomb-maker for the Libyan government, allegedly confessed to the crime. Gaddafi labeled the attack a “total success” and met with Al-Marimi afterwards to thank him for “carrying out a great national duty against the Americans,” prosecutors alleged in the complaint that was unsealed Monday.

In December 2020, federal charges were announced against Al-Marimi but the feds had not been able to take him into custody until Sunday. Although the African nation does not have an extradition treaty with the US, the country’s foreign minister had pledged last year to help bring him to justice in the states. Al-Marimi is one of three suspects ever charged in connection with the massacre, which remains the second deadliest terror attack against Americans after 9/11. Abdel Baset Ali al-Megrahi and Lamen Khalifa Fhimah were tried by a panel of Scottish judges sitting in the Netherlands more than 20 years ago. The former was convicted and the latter was acquitted of all charges.

“Since [1988] American and Scottish law enforcement have worked tirelessly to identify, find, and bring to justice the perpetrators of this horrific attack,” Attorney General Merrick Garland said in a statement. “Those relentless efforts over the past three decades led to the indictment and arrest of a former Libyan intelligence operative for his alleged role in building the bomb used in the attack, he added, calling the proceedings “an important step forward in our mission to honor the victims and pursue justice on behalf of their loved ones.”

The family members of the victims applauded the news of Al-Marimi's handover. “It was quite a moment,” said Kara Monetti Weipz, sister of victim Rick Monetti, a Syracuse University student, and the president of Victims of Pan Am Flight 103. “It was unbelievable that it was really happening after all these years, and especially after the last two years.” Paul Hudson, whose daughter Melina was one of the victims of the attack, held up a banner of pictures of additional victims outside federal court Monday. Victoria Cummock, the widow of passenger John Cummock and the Founder & CEO of the Pan Am 103 Lockerbie Legacy Foundation held a press conference in Miami Monday to praise the latest development.

Cummock said the criminal proceedings were “the first tangible step” to getting justice for the mass murders in US courts. “On behalf of my family and my organization’s members, I want to express our gratitude to President Biden, a Syracuse University alumnus, and the U.S. authorities for putting actions behind their pledges,” Cummock’s statement read according to New York Post. “Hopefully, this significant 1st step will begin to address the 3+ decades-long, miscarriage of justice. Our wish is for criminal trial proceedings to begin immediately. The victim’s families are keenly aware that after 34 years, informants and witnesses die, memories fade, and evidence can deteriorate or disappear.”

Twitter users also reacted after hearing the news. One user tweeted, "See that's what's wrong without justice system people do heinous things like this and they get three hearts and a cot free education free cable TV free workout f*** that I put the s*** on TV we need stricter penalties an eye for an eye." Another tweeted, "Freeing him up for a prisoner exchange down the road for a boneheaded celebrity, I assume." "Of course not chance is he will be traded for a basketball player", tweeted one user.

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