Edinburgh - The trial of the two men accused of the Lockerbie bombing could be undermined by the sudden resignation of Scotland's senior law officer, it has been claimed, Alex Bell, Scotland Correspondent, reports. In a surprise move, the Lord Advocate, Lord Hardie, has quit his post to become a judge. The power to appoint judges rests with the Lord Advocate, so in effect he promoted himself out of his job.
Lord Hardie was head of the Scottish prosecution team which is preparing the case against Mr Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed al-Megrahi and Mr Ali-Amin Khalifa Fhimah, which is due to start in the Netherlands on May 3rd. Two hundred and seventy people were killed when Pan Am Flight 103 blew up over the small town of Lockerbie in the Scottish Borders in 1988.
One source said: "I think the prosecution's case is unravelling, and [Lord Hardie] has resigned because he doesn't want to be left holding the parcel when the case falls apart." The Scottish National Party's justice spokeswoman, Ms Roseanna Cunningham, said: "It has been rumoured for some time that there are doubts on the sufficiency of the evidence in this case.
"However, given that this Lord Advocate has taken key decisions in the case, the fact that he is not going to be in his job when the trial begins and comes to a conclusion may raise questions in some quarters as to why he is leaving now."