Philip Marcelo, Associated Press
MONTAUK, N.Y. (AP) — The collection of 76 statues in Suse Lowenstein's backyard represents the moment she and other women learned their loved ones were killed when Pan Am Flight 103 was blown up over Lockerbie, Scotland, in 1988. Each nude, life-size statue symbolizes a mother, wife, sister, or other female relative in grief.
"The grief, everything, stays the same, just like this. This is always here," said the 82-year-old artist, whose son, Alex, was aboard Flight 103. "And so, the feelings don't go away."
Lowenstein is among many who have waited nearly four decades to see those responsible for the bombing — one of the deadliest terrorist attacks against U.S. citizens — face justice in a U.S. courtroom. The trial of the alleged bombmaker, Abu Agila Mohammad Mas'ud Kheir Al-Marimi, was scheduled to begin Wednesday in Washington, D.C., but was postponed due to the discovery of new evidence, although the specifics of that evidence were not disclosed.
Al-Marimi, a former Libyan intelligence officer, is the first to be prosecuted on American soil in connection with the attack, which killed 270 people, including 11 on the ground in Lockerbie.
The case gained traction in 2017 when U.S. officials obtained a 2012 interview in which Al-Marimi allegedly admitted to building the bomb and collaborating with two conspirators. An FBI affidavit indicated that the operation was ordered by Libyan intelligence and that the late Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi expressed gratitude to the team afterward.
Aphrodite Tsairis, whose daughter, Alexia, died on Flight 103, had planned to attend the trial's start but expressed that the delay was not unexpected. "From the very beginning, we had to fight adversity," the 83-year-old resident of central New Jersey said. "So it is not surprising to hear there are more impediments to justice being carried out."
Tsairis described the court proceedings as more of "an academic exercise" than an emotional journey at this stage in her life. She noted that the trial is not about closure but rather about concluding the narrative surrounding the tragedy.
Bert Ammerman, who lost his brother Thomas in the bombing, believes that the trial should not mark the end of the story, as he suspects other nations were involved. He stated that the bombing was an act of war against the U.S.
Stephanie Bernstein, who lost her husband Michael in the attack, remarked on the surprising emergence of new evidence so many years later. "It shows that there is still information out there, so that makes the delay somewhat less difficult to accept," she said.
Suse Lowenstein's son, Lucas, expressed hope that any new information could clarify lingering questions about the case. He noted that the loss of his brother fundamentally changed his life.
In Montauk, Suse Lowenstein finds peace among the reminders of her loss. A coat belonging to her son Alex, recovered from the wreckage, hangs in her art studio. Lowenstein expressed frustration at the trial's delay but remains confident in a guilty verdict for Al-Marimi, hoping he will face severe consequences.
By Eric Tucker, Michael Balsamo, Associated Press