In a major forensic breakthrough, Scottish experts have extracted DNA from items within the suitcase that contained the Lockerbie bomb, nearly 37 years after the attack. According to Express newspaper, the discovery could play a pivotal role in the upcoming trial of Libyan suspect Abu Agila Masud in Washington DC.
The devastating mid-air explosion of Pan Am Flight 103 on 21 December 1988 remains Britain’s deadliest terrorist atrocity, killing all 259 passengers and crew and 11 residents of Lockerbie, Scotland. Now, using advanced technology, forensic scientists have recovered DNA traces from the lining of the suitcase and an umbrella packed inside before the detonation.
Abu Ajila Masud, 74, accused of building the bomb, allegedly named two accomplices in the plot: Abdelbasset al-Megrahi, convicted in 2001, and Al Amin Khalifah Fhimah, who was acquitted but remains wanted by US authorities.
Court documents obtained by The Sunday Times reveal that Dr Nighean Stevenson, a leading DNA analyst with the Scottish Police Authority (SPA), is among the key expert witnesses for the prosecution. She examined the recovered items under specialised lighting and successfully extracted DNA samples of varying quality.
According to filings with the US District Court for the District of Columbia, a reference sample from Masud has yet to be analysed and compared. Should a match be established, it would represent a critical piece of evidence in the prosecution’s case.
The new forensic evidence has reignited hope for long-awaited justice in a case that has haunted families and investigators for decades.
