The trial of a Libyan man accused in the Lockerbie bombing has been postponed for the third time, with new evidence emerging just three days before jury selection was set to begin. Abu Agila Mohammad Kheir Al-Marimi is charged with building the bomb that destroyed Pan Am Flight 103 on December 21, 1988, killing 270 people.

Jury selection was scheduled to commence in Washington D.C. on Wednesday. However, the BBC has learned that a new trial date has been set for January of the following year. Lawyers for Al-Marimi stated that newly discovered evidence, previously unknown to both the defense and U.S. government prosecutors, emerged on Friday, August 21.

Al-Marimi has pleaded not guilty to constructing the explosive device. His legal team informed the court that "Constitutional and ethical obligations require the defense to investigate this development." They met with their client on Sunday, and he agreed to the request for a postponement.

Trial judge Dabney Friedrich has agreed to set aside the original start date, acknowledging the potential significance of the newly disclosed evidence. The judge would have been highly hesitant to grant an eleventh-hour delay after months of extensive preparation and numerous pre-trial legal battles.

This latest postponement means that a verdict in the case, which has seen many twists and turns over nearly four decades, may not be reached until next spring. For the families of the victims and Al-Marimi himself, this adds to the prolonged wait for resolution.

Pan Am Flight 103 was en route from Heathrow to New York when the bomb detonated in its forward cargo hold, causing the aircraft to break apart at 31,000 feet. All 259 passengers and crew on board perished, and an additional 11 people on the ground in Lockerbie were killed when wreckage fell onto their homes. Of the total victims, 190 were American and 43 were from the United Kingdom.

Al-Marimi has been in U.S. custody since December 2022. His trial was initially slated for May 2025 but was postponed due to the case's complexity and Al-Marimi's ill health, following a joint request from both prosecution and defense. The trial was then scheduled for April of this year but was again called off after the defense sought more time for preparation.

The Lockerbie bombing has been the subject of a joint Scottish-U.S. investigation since December 1988. Prosecutors from the Crown Office and detectives from Police Scotland were expected to attend the proceedings in Washington, with Scottish witnesses anticipated to be among the first to provide testimony. Laura Buchan, head of the Lockerbie investigation team at the Crown Office, acknowledged the adjournment would be disappointing for families and those following the case, stating that while the matter is before the court, commenting on the reasons for the adjournment is not appropriate. She affirmed that Scottish prosecutors and police remain fully committed to supporting the pursuit of justice, despite the U.S. authorities leading the proceedings.