Daily
Mail,
New evidence that
could set free the
Lockerbie bomber
M,
By Alan Crow and
Marcello Mega
THE Lockerbie bomber could be
freed after dramatic new claims that key evidence which helped convict him was
tampered with.
A
confidential report says items of evidence which led to Libyan Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed Al Megrahi being found guilty of mass murder were 'interfered' with before
his murder trial. A former senior Scottish detective who worked on the
Lockerbie inquiry team has
told lawyers reviewing Megrahi's case about
his concerns over the authenticity of certain 'labels and
productions' relating to the atrocity.
The
ex-officer claims that one key item of evidence - an instruction manual for a
Toshiba radio-cassette recorder allegedly discovered
at the crash site - was used to help lay a trail that would lead to the 'bomber'. He claims the
evidence became central to the case against
Megrahi and helped convict him of the world's biggest
terrorist atrocity before 9/11. Last night, Jim Swire, father of
one of the Lockerbie
victims, said: 'There has been a monumental
conspiracy of cover-up involving the British and American governments for the
past 18 years.
Megrahi should be released and allowed to return home
to his family.'
If the former
police officer's statement is accepted by the Scottish Criminal Cases Review
Commission, Megrahi could win a retrial or have his
conviction quashed. The astonishing account by the ex-policeman, given the codename The Golfer
to protect his anonymity, is contained in a
submission of new evidence to the commission. The
report - complied by Megrahi's lawyers - also
questions the credibility and integrity of key
prosecution witnesses and some police officers and
forensic experts. Yesterday, Dr Swire,
who lost his daughter Flora in the bombing and has
campaigned vigorously for an independent and public
inquiry into the affair, said: 'I listened to the entire evidence
through Megrahi's
trial and
appeal. On the basis of that, and further information obtained since, I
am convinced the verdict should be overturned.
'Megrahi should be released and allowed to return home to
his family. I hope this will be done through the Scottish criminal justice
system
because if it isn't, the international reputation of that system will be
wrecked for ever.
'There has
been a monumental conspiracy of cover-up involving the British and American
governments for the past 18 years.
' We need to sweep that aside and create a forum with integrity that
will give us the answers we crave to the many questions that remain.
'If and when Megrahi is freed, I believe the case for an inquiry will
become irresistible.'
Megrahi is currently serving life, with a minimum 27-year
term, at Greenock Prison.
The
commission is expected to make a decision on whether to refer the case back to
the
Megrahi's legal team believes the new evidence is so
strong that his eventual release is all but guaranteed.
Last night,
retired Labour MP Tarn Dalyell, who has campaigned tirelessly for years to
establish the truth of the Lockerbie bombing, said: 'The
Daily Mail confirms the belief I have always had that Megrahi
was a sanctions buster for Libyan Arab Airlines and the Libyan oil industry and
had
nothing to do with the Lockerbie crime.
'I welcome
what the Mail is doing and thank them for their long-term interest.'
Dr Jim Swire
(jim@swirefamily.net)