Retired detective chief superintendent Stuart Henderson MBE passed away peacefully in Edinburgh on January 31. Mr Henderson was the most senior Lothian and Borders police officer on duty on December 21, 1988 when 270 tragically lost their lives. He was appointed deputy senior investigating officer for the Lockerbie Inquiry in 1988, and took full control of the investigation in 1990.
The role dominated the latter years of his policing career and the investigation took him to 47 countries across the globe. He worked closely with the FBI investigation taskforce, and attracted praise from his colleagues for remaining close to the families affected by the Pan Am Flight 103 tragedy.
Mr Henderson compiled the report naming Abdelbaset al-Megrahi and Al-amin Khalifa Fhimah as prime suspects for the bombing. His work earned him an MBE in the 1992 New Years Honours list, and he retired later that same year. Mr Henderson marked the 10th and 25th anniversaries of the tragedy at the red sandstone Lockerbie cairn memorial at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia, USA, and was strongly opposed to releasing al-Megrahi from prison.
