When he appeared in a US court, the man accused of creating the bomb that brought down Pan Am flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland, 34 years ago was informed that he would not receive the death penalty.

The US claims that Abu Agila Masud was a member of the Libyan intelligence community and was instrumental in the 1988 attack, which resulted in the deaths of 270 people.

On Sunday, officials from Scotland and the US revealed that Mr. Masud was in US custody.

He is the first person charged with the attack on US soil. A weapon on board the Boeing 747 exploded as the flight was traveling over the English-Scottish border, killing 243 passengers, six staff, and 11 local civilians on the ground – including a family of four.

43 Britons and 190 Americans were among the deceased. The incident is still considered to be the worst terrorist attack to have occurred on British territory.

At the hearing on Monday, US Magistrate Judge Robin Meriweather decided to postpone the official reading of the charges until after Mr. Masud has retained counsel for his trial. He made no admission of guilt.

He gave his entire name to the judge, who then informed him that a translator was available to translate the proceedings into Arabic for him. His imprisonment was mandated to last at least until a hearing on his detention on December 27.

At the hearing on Monday, the prosecution stated that while they would not pursue the death penalty, Mr. Masud may get a life sentence if found guilty.

Having turned down the public defender’s office’s offer of free legal representation, Mr. Masud is now seeking legal representation, which the judge declared to be his right.

He may get a life term in prison, the death penalty, or a fine of up to $250,000 (£203,000) for each of the charges. However, US prosecutors informed the court that they will not pursue the death penalty because it was not an option under the law at the time of his alleged crime.