Lockerbie case closed, says interim justice minister

REUTERS - The Lockerbie case is closed, Libya’s interim justice minister said on Monday, apparently rebuffing a UK request for help which could lead to others, even deposed leader Muammar Gaddafi, being charged over the 1988 airliner bombing.

A spokeswoman for the Scottish Crown Office said earlier on Monday that it had asked the caretaker National Transitional Council (NTC) to make available any documentary evidence and witnesses because the attack remained an open enquiry.

Asked for his response at a news conference, Mohammed al-Alagi told reporters: “The case is closed.”

Abdel Basset al-Megrahi, a former Libyan agent, was convicted of the bombing which killed 270 people. Scotland released him on compassionate grounds in 2009 and sent him home to Libya because he was suffering from advanced terminal prostate cancer and thought to have months to live.

His release and return to a hero’s welcome in Libya infuriated many in the United States—home to most of the victims.