Libyan national, Abu Agila Masud Al-Mariami, who is accused of being one of the masterminds behind the 1988 bombing of a passenger plane over Lockerbie, Scotland, that killed 190 Americans, pleaded not guilty to three charges in a US federal court on Wednesday.
According to different reports from Washington, Masud appeared in US District Court in Washington, D.C., wearing a green prison uniform and face mask and communicated with the court through an Arabic interpreter.
The reports said that Masud’s public defender, Whitney Minter, entered a not guilty plea on his behalf and requested a jury trial on the three federal counts.
Al-Mariami is being detained in Alexandria, Virginia, and a detention hearing is set for later this month. US prosecutors said each charge could carry a maximum sentence of life in prison if convicted.
According to the reports, US authorities will request the continued detention of Masud, pending trial in a bail hearing on February 23 if his defense seeks his conditional release.
