White House backed release of Lockerbie bomber

[Beemnseven]

For those who care to read further, the evidence against al-Megrahi was awfully thin, and many believe him to be innocent.

A former Libyan intelligence agent sentenced to life for the bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 may have been wrongly convicted, concluded a Scottish panel today. In its 800-page report, the Scottish Criminal Cases Review Commission (SCCRC) stated that Abdel Basset Ali al-Megrahi may have "suffered a miscarriage of justice" during his 2001 trial, reports the Associated Press. The panel recommended that al-Megrahi be granted a new appeal.

''The commission is of the view, based upon our lengthy investigations, new evidence we have found and other evidence which was not before the trial court, that the applicant may have suffered a miscarriage of justice,'' wrote the SCCRC.

Specifically, SCCRC's report raised questions about the testimony of Tony Gauci, a store owner in Malta, notes the AP. During the trial, Gauci testified that a man resembling al-Megrahi purchased clothing at his store--apparel that was later linked to the bomb on the plane. . .