[This is the headline over a letter from Dr Jim Swire published in today’s edition of The Herald. It reads as follows:]
The aircraft wreckage from the Lockerbie bombing has been moved to Dumfries and Galloway.
I would question the probity of spending so much taxpayers' money on moving material which can add so little to the understanding of the case.
As far as I am concerned the wreckage should be recycled and the money put towards an independent inquiry into the Crown's previous performance. Having it in Scotland, not England, might encourage the realisation that it is up to Scotland to sort out the mess it has made. We must not lose sight of the fact that the bomb which caused this terrible disaster flew in over our border after being loaded at Heathrow.
It may be that this is simply a publicity exercise by the Crown Office to distract attention from the fact it will now have to answer for what I believe is its disastrous mismanagement of the inquiry and trial in the Lockerbie case.
The Justice for Megrahi group has lodged allegations of criminality against bodies and individuals involved in the Lockerbie inquiry and trial. The Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill has passed the allegations to the Crown Office and through them to the Dumfries and Galloway police, with the result that Patrick Shearer, former Chief Constable of that force, now finds himself in charge of investigating them.
I have met Mr Shearer and been impressed by his integrity and impartiality. So great are the implications of these allegations for the future of Scottish criminal justice that we should all wish Mr Shearer Godspeed in investigating this ancient and tangled case. I am encouraged to believe he is a man who will seek the truth, which is the core of what we UK relatives of the dead seek.
[In an article in today’s Scottish edition of The Sun headlined ‘The dark cloud took a long time to clear over Lockerbie... this news just brings it all back’ Dr Swire is quoted as follows:]
Dr Jim Swire, whose daughter Flora, 23, died in the bombing, claimed the wreckage may have been moved back to Scotland as a STUNT to distract from cover-up claims. The Justice for Megrahi campaign has complained to police about the Crown Office and Dumfries and Galloway cops over claims they hid evidence and perverted the course of justice in Megrahi’s trial at Camp Zeist in the Netherlands.
Dr Swire said: “My number one suspicion would be that moving the wreckage is designed to distract attention from the fact allegations have been made that Scotland has completely misled the world over this terrible case.” The Crown Office declined to comment.
[The Scottish edition of The Times today picks up the story of the return of Pan Am 103 wreckage to Scotland. Its report (behind the paywall) contains the following:]
The Crown Office and detectives from Dumfriesshire are still investigating the case, and in February joined with the FBI to meet Libyan officials in Tripoli, but failed in their efforts to question new witnesses. (...)
Megrahi was found guilty of mass murder at a trial at Camp Zeist in the Netherlands in 2001, but continued to protest his innnocence until his death last May. A posthumous appeal by members of his family, however, appears increasingly unlikely, with some sources suggesting that they are reluctant to antagonise the authorities in Libya by raising the case again.
[It might have been hoped that somewhere in this lengthy article, most of which simply rehearses already well-known facts, space could have been found to mention that Scottish police are currently investigating serious allegations of criminal misconduct in the Lockerbie investigation, prosecution and trial.
Some good sense on the wreckage removal issue is to be found in this post on Oh No! Not another Lockerbie blog...]
Friday, 26 April 2013
Thursday, 25 April 2013
Swire slates Trump and Scottish Government
[A report on the STV News website headlined Donald Trump claims advertising watchdog is 'protecting' Alex Salmond contains the following:]
American billionaire Donald trump has claimed the Advertising Standards Agency (ASA) banned one of his adverts “to protect Alex Salmond”.
In an advert, placed by Golf International Golf Links last year, the tycoon linked Alex Salmond’s stance on wind turbines to the release of Lockerbie bomber Abdelbaset al-Megrahi.
The advert appeared in The Press and Journal and The Courier but was banned by the ASA as it was “misleading”.
Mr Trump said: “The ASA is only trying to protect Alex Salmond for the disgraceful decision to release terrorist, al-Megrahi - the Lockerbie bomber freed for humanitarian reasons.
“He killed 270 people and was supposed to live one week but lived two years. This is the same mind that is destroying Scotland with industrial wind turbines.” (...)
Mr Trump has already been criticised by a father who lost his daughter in the Lockerbie disaster.
Jim Swire, whose daughter Flora died in the bombing in December 1988, said the tragedy had “no place in a confrontation between an entrepreneur who is interested in making money in Scotland and the government”.
Speaking in December he said: “We all know what Trump’s interest is and this is obviously to further his entrepreneurial practice.
“Donald Trump’s attempt to blacken the name of the Scottish Government and convince people the Highlands will turn into one vast wind park has very little to do with Lockerbie. Other than the government has refused a proper investigation into the issues.
“The discussion and investigation [about Lockerbie] has no place in a confrontation between an entrepreneur who is interested in making money in Scotland and the government who failed to investigate the infinitely more important questions over why people were killed in 1988.”
American billionaire Donald trump has claimed the Advertising Standards Agency (ASA) banned one of his adverts “to protect Alex Salmond”.
In an advert, placed by Golf International Golf Links last year, the tycoon linked Alex Salmond’s stance on wind turbines to the release of Lockerbie bomber Abdelbaset al-Megrahi.
The advert appeared in The Press and Journal and The Courier but was banned by the ASA as it was “misleading”.
Mr Trump said: “The ASA is only trying to protect Alex Salmond for the disgraceful decision to release terrorist, al-Megrahi - the Lockerbie bomber freed for humanitarian reasons.
“He killed 270 people and was supposed to live one week but lived two years. This is the same mind that is destroying Scotland with industrial wind turbines.” (...)
Mr Trump has already been criticised by a father who lost his daughter in the Lockerbie disaster.
Jim Swire, whose daughter Flora died in the bombing in December 1988, said the tragedy had “no place in a confrontation between an entrepreneur who is interested in making money in Scotland and the government”.
Speaking in December he said: “We all know what Trump’s interest is and this is obviously to further his entrepreneurial practice.
“Donald Trump’s attempt to blacken the name of the Scottish Government and convince people the Highlands will turn into one vast wind park has very little to do with Lockerbie. Other than the government has refused a proper investigation into the issues.
“The discussion and investigation [about Lockerbie] has no place in a confrontation between an entrepreneur who is interested in making money in Scotland and the government who failed to investigate the infinitely more important questions over why people were killed in 1988.”
Pan Am Flight 103 in secret return to Scotland
[This is the headline over a report in today’s Scottish edition of The Sun. It reads in part:]
A convoy of six lorries secretly returned the Lockerbie jet to Scots soil — a quarter of a century after Pan Am Flight 103 was blown up in an atrocity never to be forgotten.
The remains of the plane — which exploded in 1988 killing 270 people — were taken to an unknown secure location a few miles from the Dumfriesshire town.
The fuselage of the Boeing 747, painstakingly reconstructed in the aftermath of the terror attack, is back to aid fresh efforts to nail the accomplices of Abdelbaset al-Megrahi — the only person convicted over the blast.
It had previously been housed at an air accident investigation hangar in the south of England for almost 25 years.
Relatives of the victims were told of the move last week as the crucial central section of the plane was transported 350 miles north from Farnborough, Hants.
A source said: “The wreckage is clearly a vital piece of evidence for the Crown Office and police, should their investigations into suspects in Libya lead to more charges.
“The fuselage had been taken apart again before being transported, but it could be put back together if necessary as all the pieces are catalogued in detail.
“There have been questions over who should be storing the plane for the past decade.
“The premises where it was kept was being refurbished and it was felt most sensible to bring it back to Scotland. We have entered a new phase in the investigation after the collapse of Colonel Gaddafi’s regime, so it is important the wreckage is on hand in Scotland, meaning investigators have easy access.”
Former Libyan intelligence officer Megrahi died aged 60 of prostate cancer nearly three years after he was released by the Scottish Government on compassionate grounds. He is the only person convicted of Britain’s most deadly terror attack.
But the Crown Office believe others must have been involved.
[A report headed Lockerbie wreckage parts returned to Scotland has now appeared on the BBC News website.]
[A report headed Lockerbie wreckage parts returned to Scotland has now appeared on the BBC News website.]
Wednesday, 24 April 2013
Police in Scotland launch probe into conduct of Lockerbie case
[This is the headline over a report on the website of news agency Exaro (registration required for access to full text). A summary provided by Exaro reads as follows:]
“If that is investigated seriously, then it really does open up a whole new perspective on Lockerbie.”
Scottish authorities ‘attempted to pervert course of justice’ following terrorist bombing
Scottish police have launched an investigation into the conduct of the original case over the bombing of a Pan Am jumbo jet over Lockerbie. Exaro can reveal the development amid allegations that Scotland’s police and prosecuting authorities attempted to pervert the course of justice in the case. It remains Britain’s biggest-ever terrorist attack, but controversy has dogged the investigation into who was responsible. http://www.exaronews.com/articles/4940/police-in-scotland-launch-probe-into-conduct-of-lockerbie-case
[Within the report, I am quoted as follows:]
Robert Black, professor emeritus of Scots law at the University of Edinburgh and a member of the [Justice for Megrahi] campaign’s committee, said: “We have what I hope is a genuine police investigation into what precisely went wrong in the original investigation, prosecution and trial. Not just mistakes that were made – actual criminal conduct.
Monday, 22 April 2013
Megrahi appeal hopes fade
[This is the headline over a report in today’s edition of The Herald. It reads as follows:]
Hopes of a new appeal against the conviction of Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed al Megrahi, the only man convicted of the Lockerbie bombing, have diminished.
Relatives of Mr Megrahi have not pursued any posthumous appeal nearly a year after the Libyan died of cancer in Tripoli, and it is understood they are reluctant to do so.
First Minister Alex Salmond said it was up to the family to apply to the Scottish Criminal Case Review Commission (SCCRC) for a further appeal, adding that his death "ends one chapter of the Lockerbie case, but it does not close the book".
However, sources suggest they feel they "don't want to put their heads above the parapet".
Dr Jim Swire, whose daughter Flora was one of the 270 people killed in the 1988 bombing, previously indicated he was ready to take up a fresh appeal if Mr Megrahi's family did not. However, he has not yet done so, with Justice for Megrahi (JFM) campaign experts believing it would not be successful. [RB: I am reasonably confident that such an appeal would be successful. The problem is overcoming the hurdles to launching such an appeal that were created by the Cadder emergency legislation.]
JFM has instead taken the political route, with a petition before the Justice Committee calling for an independent inquiry into the 2001 conviction.
An 821-page dossier by the SCCRC rejected many of the grounds of appeal submitted by Mr Megrahi's lawyers, but upheld six that may have constituted a miscarriage of justice, granting Megrahi leave to appeal.
The commission, which reviews cases after appeals have concluded, even threatened the Crown with legal action if it did not hand over important documents more quickly.
Last week, members of JFM spoke to former chief constable of Dumfries and Galloway Police Pat Shearer about their assertion the criminal justice framework had been perverted in the handling of the investigation and trial. The Crown Office has previously said the claims by the group were defamatory.
A source, who admitted having no contact with the family for some time, said: "The family would like to pursue one, but feel they are under a lot scrutiny in Libya and don't want to put their heads above the parapet for fear of antagonising the lawless and violent elements."
Documents held by the family are said to have been confiscated by the Libyan Government.
Dr Swire said: "The Megrahi family has the option of applying to the SCCRC to reinstate Megrahi's appeal, or to launch a new one. Failing them, relatives like myself would be next in line to apply to do this. [ RB: Megrahi’s appeal cannot be reinstated. There is no legal procedure for this. What would have to happen is a fresh application to the SCCRC which, if successful, the High Court agreed to hear. The Cadder emergency Act hurdles would have to be surmounted.]
"The family are vulnerable in new Libya, and so far we have been unable to discover whether they will initiate such a process. If they did, they might attract the anger of the new Libyan Government or the groups with Kalashnikovs who roam Tripoli and hate anything connected with Gaddafi.
"The tragedy is that a new appeal would in fact overturn the verdict and clear Megrahi, and thereby Libya also."
Among the flaws highlighted by the SCCRC was the Crown's failure to inform the defence about a £1.9 million reward from the US Justice Department paid to two star witnesses.
Tony Gauci claimed Mr Megrahi bought clothes in his shop in Malta that were later found in the suitcase containing the bomb. His identification of the bomber was vital to the prosecution case, but the defence did not know he had been offered and paid the reward.
Mr Megrahi's lawyers would have used this to challenge the Crown's case.
Dr Swire said a circuit board fragment that was supposed to link the bomb to Mr Megrahi and Malta could not in fact have been part of the long-running Libyan timer allegedly used.
"The Crown Office has wilfully ignored this irrefutable proof of their failure, not even bothering to question the scientists who discovered the fake during all that time," he said.
"Instead they send officers to Libya, no doubt at great expense, ignoring the fact that their case that Megrahi/Libya were responsible is fatally flawed."
Hopes of a new appeal against the conviction of Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed al Megrahi, the only man convicted of the Lockerbie bombing, have diminished.
Relatives of Mr Megrahi have not pursued any posthumous appeal nearly a year after the Libyan died of cancer in Tripoli, and it is understood they are reluctant to do so.
First Minister Alex Salmond said it was up to the family to apply to the Scottish Criminal Case Review Commission (SCCRC) for a further appeal, adding that his death "ends one chapter of the Lockerbie case, but it does not close the book".
However, sources suggest they feel they "don't want to put their heads above the parapet".
Dr Jim Swire, whose daughter Flora was one of the 270 people killed in the 1988 bombing, previously indicated he was ready to take up a fresh appeal if Mr Megrahi's family did not. However, he has not yet done so, with Justice for Megrahi (JFM) campaign experts believing it would not be successful. [RB: I am reasonably confident that such an appeal would be successful. The problem is overcoming the hurdles to launching such an appeal that were created by the Cadder emergency legislation.]
JFM has instead taken the political route, with a petition before the Justice Committee calling for an independent inquiry into the 2001 conviction.
An 821-page dossier by the SCCRC rejected many of the grounds of appeal submitted by Mr Megrahi's lawyers, but upheld six that may have constituted a miscarriage of justice, granting Megrahi leave to appeal.
The commission, which reviews cases after appeals have concluded, even threatened the Crown with legal action if it did not hand over important documents more quickly.
Last week, members of JFM spoke to former chief constable of Dumfries and Galloway Police Pat Shearer about their assertion the criminal justice framework had been perverted in the handling of the investigation and trial. The Crown Office has previously said the claims by the group were defamatory.
A source, who admitted having no contact with the family for some time, said: "The family would like to pursue one, but feel they are under a lot scrutiny in Libya and don't want to put their heads above the parapet for fear of antagonising the lawless and violent elements."
Documents held by the family are said to have been confiscated by the Libyan Government.
Dr Swire said: "The Megrahi family has the option of applying to the SCCRC to reinstate Megrahi's appeal, or to launch a new one. Failing them, relatives like myself would be next in line to apply to do this. [ RB: Megrahi’s appeal cannot be reinstated. There is no legal procedure for this. What would have to happen is a fresh application to the SCCRC which, if successful, the High Court agreed to hear. The Cadder emergency Act hurdles would have to be surmounted.]
"The family are vulnerable in new Libya, and so far we have been unable to discover whether they will initiate such a process. If they did, they might attract the anger of the new Libyan Government or the groups with Kalashnikovs who roam Tripoli and hate anything connected with Gaddafi.
"The tragedy is that a new appeal would in fact overturn the verdict and clear Megrahi, and thereby Libya also."
Among the flaws highlighted by the SCCRC was the Crown's failure to inform the defence about a £1.9 million reward from the US Justice Department paid to two star witnesses.
Tony Gauci claimed Mr Megrahi bought clothes in his shop in Malta that were later found in the suitcase containing the bomb. His identification of the bomber was vital to the prosecution case, but the defence did not know he had been offered and paid the reward.
Mr Megrahi's lawyers would have used this to challenge the Crown's case.
Dr Swire said a circuit board fragment that was supposed to link the bomb to Mr Megrahi and Malta could not in fact have been part of the long-running Libyan timer allegedly used.
"The Crown Office has wilfully ignored this irrefutable proof of their failure, not even bothering to question the scientists who discovered the fake during all that time," he said.
"Instead they send officers to Libya, no doubt at great expense, ignoring the fact that their case that Megrahi/Libya were responsible is fatally flawed."
Sunday, 21 April 2013
Megrahi reference in Trump windfarm ads distasteful but not offensive, says ASA
[The following are excerpts from a report in today’s edition of The Sunday Herald:]
The Sunday Herald has learned that the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) will on Wednesday publish a damning ruling on adverts that appeared in Scottish newspapers last December. The adverts linked the First Minister's backing for wind power to the Scottish Government's decision to free the man convicted of the Lockerbie bombing, Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed al-Megrahi.
The ruling, the second against Trump's anti-wind farm campaign in Scotland, has been welcomed by environmental groups and wind lobbyists. But it has prompted the Trump Organisation, which confirmed the ruling against it, to berate the ASA for being "disorganised, inefficient and wasteful".
The adverts featured a picture of a forest of wind turbines on a hill overlooking a motorway in California under the heading "Is this the future for Scotland?" Below was a photograph of Salmond smiling and giving the thumbs up.
"Tourism will suffer and the beauty of the country is in jeopardy," said the text. "This is the same mind that backed the release of terrorist al-Megrahi 'for humane reasons' after he ruthlessly killed 270 people on Pan-Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie." (...)
The adverts, which ran in the Aberdeen Press and Journal and the Dundee Courier on December 14, prompted 21 complaints to the ASA, claiming it was misleading and the reference to al-Megrahi offensive.
The ASA has concluded that the claim tourism would suffer "could not be substantiated", while the picture of California wind farms was "misleading", it said.
On both counts Trump has broken advertising rules, and the ASA has banned the adverts from appearing again. It told Trump "not to make claims unless they could be substantiated with robust evidence and not to use misleading imagery".
According to online reports, the ASA ruled readers were likely to find the al-Megrahi reference "distasteful" but not offensive. Hence it didn't breach advertising standards.
[A similar report now appears on The Scotsman website.]
The Sunday Herald has learned that the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) will on Wednesday publish a damning ruling on adverts that appeared in Scottish newspapers last December. The adverts linked the First Minister's backing for wind power to the Scottish Government's decision to free the man convicted of the Lockerbie bombing, Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed al-Megrahi.
The ruling, the second against Trump's anti-wind farm campaign in Scotland, has been welcomed by environmental groups and wind lobbyists. But it has prompted the Trump Organisation, which confirmed the ruling against it, to berate the ASA for being "disorganised, inefficient and wasteful".
The adverts featured a picture of a forest of wind turbines on a hill overlooking a motorway in California under the heading "Is this the future for Scotland?" Below was a photograph of Salmond smiling and giving the thumbs up.
"Tourism will suffer and the beauty of the country is in jeopardy," said the text. "This is the same mind that backed the release of terrorist al-Megrahi 'for humane reasons' after he ruthlessly killed 270 people on Pan-Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie." (...)
The adverts, which ran in the Aberdeen Press and Journal and the Dundee Courier on December 14, prompted 21 complaints to the ASA, claiming it was misleading and the reference to al-Megrahi offensive.
The ASA has concluded that the claim tourism would suffer "could not be substantiated", while the picture of California wind farms was "misleading", it said.
On both counts Trump has broken advertising rules, and the ASA has banned the adverts from appearing again. It told Trump "not to make claims unless they could be substantiated with robust evidence and not to use misleading imagery".
According to online reports, the ASA ruled readers were likely to find the al-Megrahi reference "distasteful" but not offensive. Hence it didn't breach advertising standards.
[A similar report now appears on The Scotsman website.]
Friday, 19 April 2013
Thurman: forensics ensuring that right people, not wrong people, are charged
[The following are excerpts from an article headlined FBI unit zeroing in on design of devices published today on the website of The Boston Globe:]
FBI bomb technicians poring over hundreds of scraps of metal, nails, wires, and other debris — some surgically removed from bomb victims’ flesh — were closing in Thursday on the design of the explosive devices used in the Boston Marathon attacks, according to officials and forensics experts.
In an effort to trace the source of the components, the Explosives Unit at the agency’s state-of-the-art crime laboratory in Quantico, Va, outside of Washington, was comparing the materials collected from sidewalks, rooftops, gutters, overhangs, and even the soles of victims’ shoes against lab reports generated from thousands of previous blasts around the world, looking for a “bomber signature.” (...)
The methodical work at Quantico is seen as critical in helping investigators identify the perpetrators and secure a conviction in the worst terrorist attack on US soil since Sept 11, 2001.
“Most bombing investigations like this are forensically driven,” said former supervisory special agent James T Thurman, who served as chief of the Explosives Unit in the FBI Laboratory’s Bomb Data Center. “Whatever is found that ultimately goes to the laboratory is what drives the investigation and connects a possible subject with the components.” (...)
[T]hose familiar with the inquiry and the FBI’s lab said the Explosives Unit is relying on specialized tools to conduct what amounts to an autopsy on the pair of so-called IEDs — improvised explosive devices — that were apparently detonated by battery-powered timers near the Copley Square finish line.
One is a database known as the Explosive Reference Tool, a searchable computer archive containing investigation reports from bombings dating back decades, along with so-called underground bomb-making handbooks and manufacturing data for key bomb-making components and explosives. (...)
Potential evidence that was identified, bagged, and tagged — including by agents who spread out to hospitals to secure bomb material and residue removed from wounds — began arriving in the Quantico lab even before the bombing sites were fully swept for evidence.
“It is a two-way street,” said Thurman, who investigated the bombings of the US Marine Corps barracks in Lebanon in 1983, Pan Am Flight 103 in 1988, and World Trade Center in 1993. He explained that as the lab uncovers clues and materials it may send orders back to the bombing scene to look for specific things.
“They will continue that as long as it takes,” he added. “It can take less than a day. It can take a week. It can take two weeks.”
Thurman, who teaches at Eastern Kentucky University, also cautioned that it could take longer, citing the bombing of a judge in Alabama in 1988, when the forensics analysis took two years.
“This is not an overnight thing,” he said. “The issue at the end of the day is to find the guilty party who is responsible for constructing and setting off these devices,” he said. “You are ensuring that the right people and not the wrong people are being charged.”
[Tom Thurman’s part in identifying the dodgy timer circuit board fragment in the Lockerbie investigation is dealt with here and here.]
FBI bomb technicians poring over hundreds of scraps of metal, nails, wires, and other debris — some surgically removed from bomb victims’ flesh — were closing in Thursday on the design of the explosive devices used in the Boston Marathon attacks, according to officials and forensics experts.
In an effort to trace the source of the components, the Explosives Unit at the agency’s state-of-the-art crime laboratory in Quantico, Va, outside of Washington, was comparing the materials collected from sidewalks, rooftops, gutters, overhangs, and even the soles of victims’ shoes against lab reports generated from thousands of previous blasts around the world, looking for a “bomber signature.” (...)
The methodical work at Quantico is seen as critical in helping investigators identify the perpetrators and secure a conviction in the worst terrorist attack on US soil since Sept 11, 2001.
“Most bombing investigations like this are forensically driven,” said former supervisory special agent James T Thurman, who served as chief of the Explosives Unit in the FBI Laboratory’s Bomb Data Center. “Whatever is found that ultimately goes to the laboratory is what drives the investigation and connects a possible subject with the components.” (...)
[T]hose familiar with the inquiry and the FBI’s lab said the Explosives Unit is relying on specialized tools to conduct what amounts to an autopsy on the pair of so-called IEDs — improvised explosive devices — that were apparently detonated by battery-powered timers near the Copley Square finish line.
One is a database known as the Explosive Reference Tool, a searchable computer archive containing investigation reports from bombings dating back decades, along with so-called underground bomb-making handbooks and manufacturing data for key bomb-making components and explosives. (...)
Potential evidence that was identified, bagged, and tagged — including by agents who spread out to hospitals to secure bomb material and residue removed from wounds — began arriving in the Quantico lab even before the bombing sites were fully swept for evidence.
“It is a two-way street,” said Thurman, who investigated the bombings of the US Marine Corps barracks in Lebanon in 1983, Pan Am Flight 103 in 1988, and World Trade Center in 1993. He explained that as the lab uncovers clues and materials it may send orders back to the bombing scene to look for specific things.
“They will continue that as long as it takes,” he added. “It can take less than a day. It can take a week. It can take two weeks.”
Thurman, who teaches at Eastern Kentucky University, also cautioned that it could take longer, citing the bombing of a judge in Alabama in 1988, when the forensics analysis took two years.
“This is not an overnight thing,” he said. “The issue at the end of the day is to find the guilty party who is responsible for constructing and setting off these devices,” he said. “You are ensuring that the right people and not the wrong people are being charged.”
[Tom Thurman’s part in identifying the dodgy timer circuit board fragment in the Lockerbie investigation is dealt with here and here.]
Thursday, 18 April 2013
Preview of James Robertson Lockerbie novel at Boswell Book Festival
[The following is taken from the programme of the Boswell Book Festival 2013:]
A new book by James Robertson is a major literary event. Described by Irvine Welsh as “One of Britain’s best contemporary novelists” his latest novel, based on the Lockerbie bombing, a tragedy that has scarred the south west – is due out in June, so his presence at the festival gives us an exclusive preview of this new work which is already proving controversial.
With parallels to the real story, The Professor of Truth is the account of one man’s search for the truth about the bombing in which his wife and daughter were killed. When new information arrives from an unexpected source, he pursues this lead wherever it takes him, in hope not only of justice, but also escape from his enduring grief. Fiction is a departure for the Festival, but Robertson has always used the facts of contemporary and historical life in Scotland to inform his widely acclaimed novels, prompting Ian Rankin to write: ‘Robertson’s sweeping history of life and politics in twentieth century Scotland should not be ignored’.
WHERE AND WHEN
A new book by James Robertson is a major literary event. Described by Irvine Welsh as “One of Britain’s best contemporary novelists” his latest novel, based on the Lockerbie bombing, a tragedy that has scarred the south west – is due out in June, so his presence at the festival gives us an exclusive preview of this new work which is already proving controversial.
With parallels to the real story, The Professor of Truth is the account of one man’s search for the truth about the bombing in which his wife and daughter were killed. When new information arrives from an unexpected source, he pursues this lead wherever it takes him, in hope not only of justice, but also escape from his enduring grief. Fiction is a departure for the Festival, but Robertson has always used the facts of contemporary and historical life in Scotland to inform his widely acclaimed novels, prompting Ian Rankin to write: ‘Robertson’s sweeping history of life and politics in twentieth century Scotland should not be ignored’.
WHERE AND WHEN
- Boswell Marquee
- Sunday, 19 May 2013
- 5.00pm
- £8, £6 (c)
[Further posts on this blog referring to James Robertson and Lockerbie can be accessed here.]
Wednesday, 17 April 2013
Report on meeting with police investigating JFM's criminality allegations
[What follows is the text of a report by Justice for Megrahi’s secretary Robert Forrester to JFM signatory members, following yesterday’s meeting with the police officers appointed to investigate JFM’s allegations of criminal misconduct by persons involved in the Lockerbie investigation, prosecution and trial.]
As you will all be very much aware, representatives of the Justice for Megrahi Committee yesterday met with members of the police team leading the investigation into the eight JFM allegations of criminality levelled at forensic, legal and police officials involved in the Lockerbie investigation and subsequent Zeist trial. Although JFM had requested that these complaints be studied by a body independent of Lockerbie/Zeist, Justice Secretary MacAskill left us with no alternative but to submit them to the Scottish police and Crown Office; members of both groups bodies are, of course, accused of perverting the course of justice by us. These allegations were handed over to the then Chief Constable of Dumfries and Galloway Constabulary, Patrick Shearer, in November 2012, an addendum being added in March 2013. Yesterday's meeting was the first face to face contact JFM has had with the police investigating team.
For the purpose of providing context, I [refer to] the explanatory outline document covering the allegations, which we put together at the end of last year to provide assistance to journalists and others. The document may be accessed via this link: http://www.scribd.com/doc/117745379/Allegations-Outline-for-Press-1. I also [give a link to] a summary of the addendum to the allegations, entitled 'Fundamental Error'. The JFM Committee is, for obvious legal reasons, unable to publish the full allegations document and, moreover, as the Scottish Parliament Justice Committee has yet to publish the redacted version of this document, we have no intention of releasing it in advance of its appearance on the parliamentary website. Finally, I [give a link to] the JFM briefing paper used as a reference by us during the meeting. Copies of this were provided to the officers present.
The JFM delegation for yesterday's meeting consisted of Superintendent of Police (Rtd) Iain McKie and myself. Those representing the police investigators were the head of the investigating team, Deputy Chief Constable Patrick Shearer, and Chief Inspector William Sturgeon (Complaints). Mr Shearer was, prior to the amalgamation of the eight Scottish police forces on 1st April, the Chief Constable of Dumfries and Galloway Constabulary.
The meeting was both positive and very constructive, albeit within the confines of a highly fraught situation. In the brief initial stage, both parties approached each other with caution but very soon a relaxed atmosphere was established in which Iain and I felt able to express ourselves freely, frankly and openly. In short, we did not mince our words on the subject of the independence of the investigation into our allegations, and the fact that we were highly pessimistic about its prospects given that the matter ultimately has the shadow of Crown Office cast over it. We made our position clear that we bore nothing personal against DCC Shearer, his team and the integrity of his investigation since he has never given us cause to distrust him, and until such takes place, we put our faith in him to do his job without fear, favour and prejudice. However, we roundly pilloried Lord Advocate Frank Mulholland for the manner in which he has comported himself by vilifying JFM via 'the court of public opinion': particularly in The Scotsman on 24th September 2012 and The Times (Scotland Edition) on 21st December 2012 (as per outlined in our briefing paper - see attached). We additionally condemned the Lord Advocate for bringing disrepute upon his office due to his irresponsible conduct, and failing to reach the standards of conduct expected of prosecutors as laid down by the The International Association of Prosecutors' Standard of Professional Responsibility and Statement of the Essential Duties and Rights of Prosecutors.
Furthermore, we made it plain that we were particularly disappointed in Justice Secretary MacAskill's failure to exercise his powers under sections 1 and 28 of the 2005 Inquiries Act, which enable him to appoint a body independent of Lockerbie/Zeist to investigate our allegations. In brief, DCC Shearer could not have left yesterday's encounter with any uncertainties about our message and its sentiment (as expressed in the briefing paper). It should be pointed out in passing that, because of the way the meeting developed, we did not deliver it in one continuous 'sermon' but more in an organic but focussed manner as the discussion took form.
At the start of the meeting, DCC Shearer came over as being rather apprehensive regarding how he thought we had been intending to deal with the arrangements for the interviews to be held on the specific allegations. If I understood correctly, he seemed to have been given the impression that he was going to have to be dealing with the entire JFM Committee every time an interview on an individual allegation took place. However, once we had managed to allay his fears and explained our plans (see briefing paper), he was noticeably more relaxed. Nonetheless, he maintained an understandably cautious but very friendly reserve throughout. From a practical standpoint, he seems happy with our plans to have our five chosen witnesses speaking to the eight allegations, for our legal [adviser], to be present at the interviews and for them to be recorded.
In respect of the process, he stated that he was performing an initial document search before interviewing JFM, and following that, he will move on to interviewing the accused. He also made the important point that it would facilitate the investigation if we had any other documents we wished to add to the two already in his possession that we do so sooner rather than later. It was very encouraging and perfectly clear for us to see that in a rather busy period for him, what with the amalgamation of the forces to deal with, DCC Shearer has done a considerable amount of background work on the allegations since they were submitted. On other matters, he also said he would be providing us with updates on the basis of any significant developments taking place in the investigation. Moreover, he emphasised that he wanted to see consistency and continuity in terms of the staffing and other aspects of the investigations, which is a positive sign. The impression was given of someone who is interested in the task and will be committed, thorough and keen that everything be done strictly by the book. Although DCC Shearer will be retiring in October, he gave us strong grounds for believing that there would be seamless consistency in standards and approach despite this.
Chief Inspector William Sturgeon wrote up a provisional report of the meeting and I have now supplied him with further material on our group to assist him in completing it. Once he has typed it up, we will have complete editorial control over its content.
DCC Shearer impressed us as someone with whom we found it easy to develop a positive rapport, even on the basis of this brief initial encounter. The massive difficulty we all have, not just JFM but the police too in my view, is the spectre of Chambers Street (The Crown Office - to whom DCC Shearer ultimately has to report his findings).
We conducted interviews afterwards with ITV Border News journalist Matthew Taylor. In them we covered a range of elements relating to JFM, the call for an inquiry and our allegations, however, the actual piece which was broadcast is extremely brief. Having said that, it is accurate, and considerably better than no media attention at all. Follow the link below to see the piece:
http://www.itv.com/news/border/update/2013-04-16/full-report-megrahi-campaigners-meet-investigators/
It is noteworthy that the Crown's comment on this meeting, as elicited by Matthew Taylor, was: "The allegations made by Justice for Megrahi are being considered by DCC Shearer in accordance with due process and it would be inappropriate to offer comment at this stage". We find this new found reserve a welcome departure from the excesses we have become accustomed to emanating from the Lord Advocate and the Crown Office, perhaps reflecting the fact that some of the allegations may be posing one or two complications for Chambers Street.
I apologise for the volume of material contained in this mail. You will appreciate, however, that after almost six months of apparently little or no activity evident at our end, this meeting carries some significance for our group.
We will be sending a report on this meeting to the Justice Committee.
As you will all be very much aware, representatives of the Justice for Megrahi Committee yesterday met with members of the police team leading the investigation into the eight JFM allegations of criminality levelled at forensic, legal and police officials involved in the Lockerbie investigation and subsequent Zeist trial. Although JFM had requested that these complaints be studied by a body independent of Lockerbie/Zeist, Justice Secretary MacAskill left us with no alternative but to submit them to the Scottish police and Crown Office; members of both groups bodies are, of course, accused of perverting the course of justice by us. These allegations were handed over to the then Chief Constable of Dumfries and Galloway Constabulary, Patrick Shearer, in November 2012, an addendum being added in March 2013. Yesterday's meeting was the first face to face contact JFM has had with the police investigating team.
For the purpose of providing context, I [refer to] the explanatory outline document covering the allegations, which we put together at the end of last year to provide assistance to journalists and others. The document may be accessed via this link: http://www.scribd.com/doc/117745379/Allegations-Outline-for-Press-1. I also [give a link to] a summary of the addendum to the allegations, entitled 'Fundamental Error'. The JFM Committee is, for obvious legal reasons, unable to publish the full allegations document and, moreover, as the Scottish Parliament Justice Committee has yet to publish the redacted version of this document, we have no intention of releasing it in advance of its appearance on the parliamentary website. Finally, I [give a link to] the JFM briefing paper used as a reference by us during the meeting. Copies of this were provided to the officers present.
The JFM delegation for yesterday's meeting consisted of Superintendent of Police (Rtd) Iain McKie and myself. Those representing the police investigators were the head of the investigating team, Deputy Chief Constable Patrick Shearer, and Chief Inspector William Sturgeon (Complaints). Mr Shearer was, prior to the amalgamation of the eight Scottish police forces on 1st April, the Chief Constable of Dumfries and Galloway Constabulary.
The meeting was both positive and very constructive, albeit within the confines of a highly fraught situation. In the brief initial stage, both parties approached each other with caution but very soon a relaxed atmosphere was established in which Iain and I felt able to express ourselves freely, frankly and openly. In short, we did not mince our words on the subject of the independence of the investigation into our allegations, and the fact that we were highly pessimistic about its prospects given that the matter ultimately has the shadow of Crown Office cast over it. We made our position clear that we bore nothing personal against DCC Shearer, his team and the integrity of his investigation since he has never given us cause to distrust him, and until such takes place, we put our faith in him to do his job without fear, favour and prejudice. However, we roundly pilloried Lord Advocate Frank Mulholland for the manner in which he has comported himself by vilifying JFM via 'the court of public opinion': particularly in The Scotsman on 24th September 2012 and The Times (Scotland Edition) on 21st December 2012 (as per outlined in our briefing paper - see attached). We additionally condemned the Lord Advocate for bringing disrepute upon his office due to his irresponsible conduct, and failing to reach the standards of conduct expected of prosecutors as laid down by the The International Association of Prosecutors' Standard of Professional Responsibility and Statement of the Essential Duties and Rights of Prosecutors.
Furthermore, we made it plain that we were particularly disappointed in Justice Secretary MacAskill's failure to exercise his powers under sections 1 and 28 of the 2005 Inquiries Act, which enable him to appoint a body independent of Lockerbie/Zeist to investigate our allegations. In brief, DCC Shearer could not have left yesterday's encounter with any uncertainties about our message and its sentiment (as expressed in the briefing paper). It should be pointed out in passing that, because of the way the meeting developed, we did not deliver it in one continuous 'sermon' but more in an organic but focussed manner as the discussion took form.
At the start of the meeting, DCC Shearer came over as being rather apprehensive regarding how he thought we had been intending to deal with the arrangements for the interviews to be held on the specific allegations. If I understood correctly, he seemed to have been given the impression that he was going to have to be dealing with the entire JFM Committee every time an interview on an individual allegation took place. However, once we had managed to allay his fears and explained our plans (see briefing paper), he was noticeably more relaxed. Nonetheless, he maintained an understandably cautious but very friendly reserve throughout. From a practical standpoint, he seems happy with our plans to have our five chosen witnesses speaking to the eight allegations, for our legal [adviser], to be present at the interviews and for them to be recorded.
In respect of the process, he stated that he was performing an initial document search before interviewing JFM, and following that, he will move on to interviewing the accused. He also made the important point that it would facilitate the investigation if we had any other documents we wished to add to the two already in his possession that we do so sooner rather than later. It was very encouraging and perfectly clear for us to see that in a rather busy period for him, what with the amalgamation of the forces to deal with, DCC Shearer has done a considerable amount of background work on the allegations since they were submitted. On other matters, he also said he would be providing us with updates on the basis of any significant developments taking place in the investigation. Moreover, he emphasised that he wanted to see consistency and continuity in terms of the staffing and other aspects of the investigations, which is a positive sign. The impression was given of someone who is interested in the task and will be committed, thorough and keen that everything be done strictly by the book. Although DCC Shearer will be retiring in October, he gave us strong grounds for believing that there would be seamless consistency in standards and approach despite this.
Chief Inspector William Sturgeon wrote up a provisional report of the meeting and I have now supplied him with further material on our group to assist him in completing it. Once he has typed it up, we will have complete editorial control over its content.
DCC Shearer impressed us as someone with whom we found it easy to develop a positive rapport, even on the basis of this brief initial encounter. The massive difficulty we all have, not just JFM but the police too in my view, is the spectre of Chambers Street (The Crown Office - to whom DCC Shearer ultimately has to report his findings).
We conducted interviews afterwards with ITV Border News journalist Matthew Taylor. In them we covered a range of elements relating to JFM, the call for an inquiry and our allegations, however, the actual piece which was broadcast is extremely brief. Having said that, it is accurate, and considerably better than no media attention at all. Follow the link below to see the piece:
http://www.itv.com/news/border/update/2013-04-16/full-report-megrahi-campaigners-meet-investigators/
It is noteworthy that the Crown's comment on this meeting, as elicited by Matthew Taylor, was: "The allegations made by Justice for Megrahi are being considered by DCC Shearer in accordance with due process and it would be inappropriate to offer comment at this stage". We find this new found reserve a welcome departure from the excesses we have become accustomed to emanating from the Lord Advocate and the Crown Office, perhaps reflecting the fact that some of the allegations may be posing one or two complications for Chambers Street.
I apologise for the volume of material contained in this mail. You will appreciate, however, that after almost six months of apparently little or no activity evident at our end, this meeting carries some significance for our group.
We will be sending a report on this meeting to the Justice Committee.
Megrahi campaign meeting
[This is the headline over a report in today’s edition of The Herald. It reads as follows:]
Campaigners who believe Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed al Megrahi, the only man convicted of the Lockerbie bombing that killed 270 people, did not get a fair trial have met the man in charge of the investigation.
Members of the Justice for Megrahi campaign have spoken to investigators as part of their campaign to reopen the inquiry into Megrahi's conviction.
The campaigners, who believe many aspects of the original investigation were mishandled, asked former chief constable of Dumfries and Galloway Police Pat Shearer yesterday to look into their claims. [RB: JFM’s allegations relate not to mishandling of the investigation, but to criminal misconduct in the investigation, prosecution and trial.]
The Crown Office said: "The allegations made by Justice for Megrahi are being considered by DCC Shearer in accordance with due process and it would be inappropriate to offer comment at this stage."
[The Crown Office did not seem to have much concern for “due process” when it made the scathing and defamatory comments that can be read here and here and here soon after JFM’s allegations of criminality were first submitted.]
Campaigners who believe Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed al Megrahi, the only man convicted of the Lockerbie bombing that killed 270 people, did not get a fair trial have met the man in charge of the investigation.
Members of the Justice for Megrahi campaign have spoken to investigators as part of their campaign to reopen the inquiry into Megrahi's conviction.
The campaigners, who believe many aspects of the original investigation were mishandled, asked former chief constable of Dumfries and Galloway Police Pat Shearer yesterday to look into their claims. [RB: JFM’s allegations relate not to mishandling of the investigation, but to criminal misconduct in the investigation, prosecution and trial.]
The Crown Office said: "The allegations made by Justice for Megrahi are being considered by DCC Shearer in accordance with due process and it would be inappropriate to offer comment at this stage."
[The Crown Office did not seem to have much concern for “due process” when it made the scathing and defamatory comments that can be read here and here and here soon after JFM’s allegations of criminality were first submitted.]
Tuesday, 16 April 2013
FBI Lockerbie explosives expert comments on Boston bombing
[What follows is an excerpt from a report headlined FBI combs Boston crime scene for clues published this evening on the website of The Financial Times:]
Tom Thurman, a former FBI explosives specialist who was involved in the investigations of the bombing of the Pan Am flight over Lockerbie and the 1993 World Trade Center bombing, said the fact that the bombs produced white smoke indicated they were probably an improvised device. While military explosives such as C4 cause big plumes of black smoke, he said, white smoke was usually the result of a device that contained gunpowder or a commercial rock-blasting explosive such as dynamite.
Mr Thurman, now at eastern Kentucky University, said an improvised device would need to be packed into some form of container such as a pipe, which could explain the reports of extensive shrapnel wounds among some of the victims.
While the FBI, which is leading the investigation, said it was pursuing a number of leads, former security officers warned that such cases can sometimes take a long time to resolve.
[It was Tom Thurman who purportedly identified the crucial Lockerbie circuit board fragment as coming from a MEBO MST-13 timer. Posts on this blog in which he is mentioned can be accessed here.]
Tom Thurman, a former FBI explosives specialist who was involved in the investigations of the bombing of the Pan Am flight over Lockerbie and the 1993 World Trade Center bombing, said the fact that the bombs produced white smoke indicated they were probably an improvised device. While military explosives such as C4 cause big plumes of black smoke, he said, white smoke was usually the result of a device that contained gunpowder or a commercial rock-blasting explosive such as dynamite.
Mr Thurman, now at eastern Kentucky University, said an improvised device would need to be packed into some form of container such as a pipe, which could explain the reports of extensive shrapnel wounds among some of the victims.
While the FBI, which is leading the investigation, said it was pursuing a number of leads, former security officers warned that such cases can sometimes take a long time to resolve.
[It was Tom Thurman who purportedly identified the crucial Lockerbie circuit board fragment as coming from a MEBO MST-13 timer. Posts on this blog in which he is mentioned can be accessed here.]
Justice For Megrahi campaigners to meet investigators
[This is the headline over a report published today on the ITV News Border website. It reads as follows:]
Campaigners who say that Abdel Baset Al-Megrahi did not get a fair trial are to meet with the chief investigator in the Lockerbie bombing inquiry today. Two members from Justice For Megrahi [RB: secretary Robert Forrester and committee member Iain McKie] will speak with former chief constable, Pat Shearer.
[A further report on the same webpage bears the headline Lockerbie bomber campaigners to meet with investigators and reads as follows:]
Campaigners who believe the Lockerbie bomber Al Megrahi didn't get a fair trial are to meet with the man in charge of the investigation.
Former chief constable of Dumfries and Galloway Police Pat Shearer will speak to members of the Justice for Megrahi campaign in Dumfries today.
[The purpose of the meeting is to allow the investigators to explain how they intend to conduct the investigation into Justice for Megrahi's allegations of criminal misconduct in the course of the Lockerbie investigation, prosecution and trial.
A television report following the meeting, including an interview with Robert Forrester, can be viewed here on the ITV News Border website. Because of internet connection difficulties in the Roggeveld Karoo, I have not myself been able to watch it.]
Campaigners who say that Abdel Baset Al-Megrahi did not get a fair trial are to meet with the chief investigator in the Lockerbie bombing inquiry today. Two members from Justice For Megrahi [RB: secretary Robert Forrester and committee member Iain McKie] will speak with former chief constable, Pat Shearer.
[A further report on the same webpage bears the headline Lockerbie bomber campaigners to meet with investigators and reads as follows:]
Campaigners who believe the Lockerbie bomber Al Megrahi didn't get a fair trial are to meet with the man in charge of the investigation.
Former chief constable of Dumfries and Galloway Police Pat Shearer will speak to members of the Justice for Megrahi campaign in Dumfries today.
[The purpose of the meeting is to allow the investigators to explain how they intend to conduct the investigation into Justice for Megrahi's allegations of criminal misconduct in the course of the Lockerbie investigation, prosecution and trial.
A television report following the meeting, including an interview with Robert Forrester, can be viewed here on the ITV News Border website. Because of internet connection difficulties in the Roggeveld Karoo, I have not myself been able to watch it.]
Monday, 15 April 2013
Scots: Libya thwarting new Lockerbie probe
This is the headline over a report published yesterday evening by the UPI news agency. Today’s edition of The Times (behind the paywall) also runs an article headed Lockerbie police on Libyan visit to question suspects are snubbed. The Libya TV website features a report headlined Lockerbie bombing: witnesses in Libya swerve Scottish police. None of these reports adds anything to that published yesterday on the Daily Record website and noted on this blog here.
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