Edwin Bollier
Encyclopedia
Edwin Bollier and his partner, Erwin Meister
, founded Mebo Telecommunications AG in Zürich
, Switzerland in 1969.
radio station Radio Nordsee International
(RNI) aboard the radio ship Mebo II
, anchored first off Scheveningen, Netherlands, then in the North Sea
off the English coast at Clacton, then back to off Scheveningen. By 1971, the station was highly popular, especially in the Netherlands
, but also Western Europe, its programs beamed by powerful medium and dual shortwave transmitters. After transmissions ceased in 1974, and a lengthy legal battle with the Dutch government over its impoundment of the vessel, in 1977 the Mebo II
sailed for Tripoli
, Libya, where it was initially leased to the Libyan government for use as a radio station; then later sunk during military target practice in the Gulf of Sidra
. The deal marked the beginning of a long business relationship with Libya.
in 2000 to have been the trigger for the bomb
that brought the aircraft down over Lockerbie
in Scotland on 21 December 1988.
In the early stages of the investigation into the bombing of Pan Am Flight 103
, the Scottish police showed Bollier a photograph of what he said was a brown 8-ply timer fragment, from a prototype timer that was never supplied to Libya
. At the Lockerbie trial
, Bollier was asked to identify a green 9-ply timer fragment from an MST-13 timer, 20 of which had been delivered to Libya. He wanted to dispute the evidence but trial Judge, Lord Sutherland, did not permit him to do so.
During Bollier's testimony, it was revealed that the prosecution had been considering charging him with the same conspiracy
to murder charge as the two Libyans, Megrahi and Fhimah
, faced. When the defence protested that they had not been given notice of that position, prosecuting counsel, Alan Turnbull QC
, told the court:
As a discouragement to the prosecution, Bollier is alleged to have let it be known before the start of the trial that if he were to be charged for the PA 103 bombing he would call some high-ranking and controversial witnesses to appear, for example: former United States President
George H. W. Bush
, Lieutenant Colonel Oliver North
and Gerrit Pretorius, private secretary to South Africa's former foreign minister Pik Botha
.
that he was offered $4 million – plus a new identity in the United States – if he would agree to "write in a police statement" that the timer fragment allegedly found at the Pan Am Flight 103 crash site was actually part of a Mebo MST-13 timer that his firm had supplied to Libya. He apparently turned down the offer.
In a BBC documentary screened on 31 August 2008 Bollier claimed that he had been offered $200 million by the Gaddafi government if he could "... get Al Megrahi out of prison". Bollier stated that he was hoping that the Gaddafi government might still pay him this.
Erwin Meister
Erwin Meister is a Swiss businessman who, with his partner Edwin Bollier, formed the company Mebo Telecommunications in 1969. They bought a Dutch freighter, renamed it Mebo II, and converted it into an offshore radio station.-RNI:...
, founded Mebo Telecommunications AG in Zürich
Zürich
Zurich is the largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is located in central Switzerland at the northwestern tip of Lake Zurich...
, Switzerland in 1969.
Radio Nordsee International
In 1970, the partners Meister and Bollier had established the international watersInternational waters
The terms international waters or trans-boundary waters apply where any of the following types of bodies of water transcend international boundaries: oceans, large marine ecosystems, enclosed or semi-enclosed regional seas and estuaries, rivers, lakes, groundwater systems , and wetlands.Oceans,...
radio station Radio Nordsee International
Radio North Sea International
Radio North Sea International also known as Radio Nordsee International in German and Radio Noordzee Internationaal in Dutch, was a European offshore radio station, run by the Swiss firm Mebo Telecommunications, jointly owned by Swiss engineer, Edwin Bollier, and his business partner, Erwin Meister...
(RNI) aboard the radio ship Mebo II
Mebo II
The Mebo II was originally the Dutch freighter, "Silvretta," built in 1948 by De Groot en van Vliet, Slikkerveer. It had a weight of 630 tons and a length of 186 feet. In 1969, it was bought by Edwin Bollier and Erwin Meister, renamed and converted into an offshore radio station at the same...
, anchored first off Scheveningen, Netherlands, then in the North Sea
North Sea
In the southwest, beyond the Straits of Dover, the North Sea becomes the English Channel connecting to the Atlantic Ocean. In the east, it connects to the Baltic Sea via the Skagerrak and Kattegat, narrow straits that separate Denmark from Norway and Sweden respectively...
off the English coast at Clacton, then back to off Scheveningen. By 1971, the station was highly popular, especially in the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
, but also Western Europe, its programs beamed by powerful medium and dual shortwave transmitters. After transmissions ceased in 1974, and a lengthy legal battle with the Dutch government over its impoundment of the vessel, in 1977 the Mebo II
Mebo II
The Mebo II was originally the Dutch freighter, "Silvretta," built in 1948 by De Groot en van Vliet, Slikkerveer. It had a weight of 630 tons and a length of 186 feet. In 1969, it was bought by Edwin Bollier and Erwin Meister, renamed and converted into an offshore radio station at the same...
sailed for Tripoli
Tripoli
Tripoli is the capital and largest city in Libya. It is also known as Western Tripoli , to distinguish it from Tripoli, Lebanon. It is affectionately called The Mermaid of the Mediterranean , describing its turquoise waters and its whitewashed buildings. Tripoli is a Greek name that means "Three...
, Libya, where it was initially leased to the Libyan government for use as a radio station; then later sunk during military target practice in the Gulf of Sidra
Gulf of Sidra
Gulf of Sidra is a body of water in the Mediterranean Sea on the northern coast of Libya; it is also known as Gulf of Sirte or the Great Sirte or Greater Syrtis .- Geography :The Gulf of Sidra has been a major centre for tuna fishing in the Mediterranean for centuries...
. The deal marked the beginning of a long business relationship with Libya.
MST-13
Mebo's MST-13 timing device was claimed at the Pan Am Flight 103 bombing trialPan Am Flight 103 bombing trial
The Pan Am Flight 103 bombing trial began on 3 May 2000, 11 years, 4 months and 13 days after the destruction of Pan Am Flight 103 on 21 December 1988...
in 2000 to have been the trigger for the bomb
Improvised explosive device
An improvised explosive device , also known as a roadside bomb, is a homemade bomb constructed and deployed in ways other than in conventional military action...
that brought the aircraft down over Lockerbie
Lockerbie
Lockerbie is a town in the Dumfries and Galloway region of south-western Scotland. It lies approximately from Glasgow, and from the English border. It had a population of 4,009 at the 2001 census...
in Scotland on 21 December 1988.
In the early stages of the investigation into the bombing of Pan Am Flight 103
Investigation into the bombing of Pan Am Flight 103
The investigation into the bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 began at 19:03 on December 21, 1988 when Pan Am Flight 103 was blown up over Lockerbie in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland. The perpetrators had intended the plane to crash into the sea, destroying any traceable evidence, but the late departure...
, the Scottish police showed Bollier a photograph of what he said was a brown 8-ply timer fragment, from a prototype timer that was never supplied to Libya
Libya
Libya is an African country in the Maghreb region of North Africa bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to the east, Sudan to the southeast, Chad and Niger to the south, and Algeria and Tunisia to the west....
. At the Lockerbie trial
Pan Am Flight 103 bombing trial
The Pan Am Flight 103 bombing trial began on 3 May 2000, 11 years, 4 months and 13 days after the destruction of Pan Am Flight 103 on 21 December 1988...
, Bollier was asked to identify a green 9-ply timer fragment from an MST-13 timer, 20 of which had been delivered to Libya. He wanted to dispute the evidence but trial Judge, Lord Sutherland, did not permit him to do so.
Possibility of co-conspirator charge
Bollier had rented office space to the Libyan who was convicted of bombing Pan Am Flight 103.During Bollier's testimony, it was revealed that the prosecution had been considering charging him with the same conspiracy
Conspiracy (crime)
In the criminal law, a conspiracy is an agreement between two or more persons to break the law at some time in the future, and, in some cases, with at least one overt act in furtherance of that agreement...
to murder charge as the two Libyans, Megrahi and Fhimah
Lamin Khalifah Fhimah
Lamin Khalifa Fhimah was a station manager for Libyan Arab Airlines at Luqa Airport, Malta. On 31 January 2001, he was found not guilty and acquitted of 270 counts of murder in the Pan Am Flight 103 bombing trial by a panel of three Scottish judges sitting in a special court at Camp Zeist,...
, faced. When the defence protested that they had not been given notice of that position, prosecuting counsel, Alan Turnbull QC
Alan Turnbull, Lord Turnbull
Alan Turnbull, Lord Turnbull is a Scottish lawyer, and a Senator of the College of Justice, a judge of the country's Supreme Courts. He was one of the lead prosecutors in the Pan Am Flight 103 bombing trial.-Early life:...
, told the court:
- "If we were going to libel him we would have done so, these issues have been considered. The decision not to include him as a co-conspirator is not a recognition that he has nothing to do with the matter. The extent of his involvement is yet to be developed in evidence. It may be he has involvement in what occurred, but unless the CrownThe CrownThe Crown is a corporation sole that in the Commonwealth realms and any provincial or state sub-divisions thereof represents the legal embodiment of governance, whether executive, legislative, or judicial...
is able to adduce evidence that places him in the conspiracy, it is not appropriate to libel him as a co-conspirator."
As a discouragement to the prosecution, Bollier is alleged to have let it be known before the start of the trial that if he were to be charged for the PA 103 bombing he would call some high-ranking and controversial witnesses to appear, for example: former United States President
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
George H. W. Bush
George H. W. Bush
George Herbert Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 41st President of the United States . He had previously served as the 43rd Vice President of the United States , a congressman, an ambassador, and Director of Central Intelligence.Bush was born in Milton, Massachusetts, to...
, Lieutenant Colonel Oliver North
Oliver North
Oliver Laurence North is a retired U.S. Marine Corps officer, political commentator, host of War Stories with Oliver North on Fox News Channel, a military historian, and a New York Times best-selling author....
and Gerrit Pretorius, private secretary to South Africa's former foreign minister Pik Botha
Pik Botha
Roelof Frederik "Pik" Botha is a former South African politician who served as the country's foreign minister in the last years of the apartheid era...
.
"$4 million offer" to Bollier
In October 2007, Bollier told UN-observer Dr Hans KöchlerHans Köchler
Hans Köchler is a professor of philosophy at the University of Innsbruck, Austria, and president of the International Progress Organization, a non-governmental organization in consultative status with the United Nations...
that he was offered $4 million – plus a new identity in the United States – if he would agree to "write in a police statement" that the timer fragment allegedly found at the Pan Am Flight 103 crash site was actually part of a Mebo MST-13 timer that his firm had supplied to Libya. He apparently turned down the offer.
In a BBC documentary screened on 31 August 2008 Bollier claimed that he had been offered $200 million by the Gaddafi government if he could "... get Al Megrahi out of prison". Bollier stated that he was hoping that the Gaddafi government might still pay him this.