Lockerbie relatives urged to sign up to view trial online

Relatives of people killed in the Lockerbie bombing may be able to watch the US trial of the alleged bomb-maker online from home.

They are being urged to register their interest in using Zoom to view the trial of Libyan Abu Agile Masud, which is due to begin in May 2025.

US Department of Justice prosecutors say many of the victims' families are now too old or infirm to travel to Washington DC to watch the proceedings in person.

But Masud's defence team want live streams restricted to federal courthouses and US embassies and consulates overseas.

He is accused of making the device that destroyed Pan Am 103 as it flew over Scotland on 21 December 1988, which he denies.

Of the 270 victims, 190 were from the US, at least 40 from the UK and the remainder from 19 other nations.

The move to try and limit online access to the trial has angered families of the victims.

Victoria Cummock, whose 38-year-old husband, John, was on the flight, wants to ensure relatives have access to personal, remote access to the proceedings.

"This trial is the first - and probably the last - opportunity for the US Department of Justice to adjudicate the mass murder of our loved ones," the 71-year-old said

"Even if you do not plan to view the trial, declaring your interest could help all family members receive direct, virtual trial access. There is strength in numbers."

Her husband is buried at Lockerbie's Tundergarth cemetery. Their children were six, four and three when he died.

Masud is charged with two counts of destruction of an aircraft resulting in death and a count of destruction of a vehicle resulting in death.

He has pleaded not guilty to all three charges in a federal court in Washington and awaits trial.

On 24 June the court ordered Department of Justice prosecutors to identify the total number of living victims who would like remote access to the trial.

The court is currently weighing up how to grant remote access to the proceedings.

Ms Cummock, who is founder and CEO of The Pan Am 103 Lockerbie Legacy Foundation, has appealed to surviving relatives to register an interest in viewing the trial before 31 July.

She is hoping to ensure they have online access to proceedings, removing the need for costly travel to the US and accommodation expenses over a lengthy period.

"The defence’s position is an outrage and a clear denial of our rights - rights for which we have fought long and hard," she said.

Ms Cummock makes regular visits to her husband's resting place at Tundergarth from her home in Miami.

She has campaigned for more than three decades to bring those responsible for the terror attack to justice.

"We believe there are thousands of living crime victims, a number that, if recognised by the court, will convince the court to grant personal remote access, rather than undertake the herculean task and related costs of staffing dozens of remote viewing sites worldwide."

The first Lockerbie trial took place at a specially-convened Scottish court sitting at Camp Zeist in the Netherlands. Relatives of the victims were able to watch via remote video feeds in Scotland and the US.

That case ended with the conviction of Abdulbasset al-Megrahi, who was found guilty of mass murder and jailed for life.

He was released by the Scottish government on compassionate grounds in 2009 and died in Libya three years later.

Scottish and American prosecutors alleged that the bombing was the work of the Libyan intelligence service and that others were involved along with Megrahi.