Libya: Council sure Lockerbie bomber Megrahi still living in suburban Tripoli home

Published on Wednesday 23 March 2011 16:49

THE Lockerbie bomber has had "recent" contact with the Scottish council tasked with keeping tabs on his life licence release.

And the council is satisfied he has not moved home in Libya.

Despite reports that Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed al-Megrahi had been spirited away by the Gaddafi regime, a spokesman for East Renfrewshire Council, the council tasked with monitoring the only man convicted of the Lockerbie bombing, said it is "satisfied that he is not in breach of any licence conditions".

Sources close to the monitoring authority say the supervising officer in the case is satisfied that Megrahi is still at the same address in a Tripoli suburb.

The council contacted the bomber amid reports he had been moved to a safehouse by the Gaddafi regime as coalition UN forces targeted air defences around the Libyan capital.

Part of Megrahi's life licence conditions state he must alert the council to any change of address and agree it with it in advance. It has a secure videolink to the bomber, and call him as and when it deems necessary.

The spokesman added: "The contact is when we need to speak to him. We have done. That contact was very recent."

Megrahi, 58, returned home in August 2009 following compassionate release from prison in Scotland after he was diagnosed with prostate cancer.