Scotbom: Evidence and the Lockerbie Investigation

This account of the investigation of the bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland is written by the FBI agent who led the U.S. investigation. He reveals what it was like to work on a major international investigation involving terrorism long before 9/11 and shows what it took to bring two of the Libyans to trial at a Scottish court sitting in the Netherlands over 12 years later. The findings of the Scottish court are analyzed from the view of the man who “lived” Lockerbie for over 12 years. Pan Am Flight 103 exploded over Lockerbie, Scotland on December 21, 1988. This tragedy killed 270 people including 189 Americans; and it changed the way the world looked at terrorism. This firsthand account, written by the FBI Special Agent who managed all aspects of the investigation from start to finish, gives the reader a rare glimpse into the inner workings of a major international criminal investigation. The book looks at some of the world events which surrounded the event; considers original suspects, a Palestinian terrorist group which had been based in Germany; and evaluates other theories as to who was behind the sinister plot. The book discusses the organizational structures the United States and Scotland put in place to address this international crime, now a model for international interagency cooperation on questions of terrorism. Through the eyes of the author, the reader will experience the frustrations, failures and successes leading up to the indictment of two Libyans in 1991 in a move that signaled a change of direction for US-Libyan relations. The book also analyzes the trial which took place at a Scottish Court sitting in the Netherlands in 2000¬-2001. Finally, the book contains a summation of the lessons learned which can be used not only by law enforcement personnel but anyone facing adversity and looking for ways to deal with it.Some authors writing on this topic have had access to senior officials in either the FBI or the Scottish police. Many have used media reporting or trial records to complete their books—but none has had the start-to-finish inside perspective that characterizes Scotbom. The book reveals inside information such as the surveillance in Moscow by the KGB of a potential suspect, the infighting both within the FBI and between the FBI-CIA-Scottish Police as well as numerous anecdotes about events which have never before been discussed and not ever contained in court records. This inside story is written by a retired senior official within the FBI who attended each international conference and most of the meetings in Washington about the investigation, traveled with the Libyan defector to London to get his wife and return her to the United States, and then spent weeks with the defector at the trial in the Netherlands in 2000. The author was also present at the initial appearance of the defendants in the Netherlands, the trial, the verdict as well as the appeal. The start-to-finish story has never been told and will not ever be told other than by the author because of his unique position. Read more