Rogues: True Stories of Grifters, Killers, Rebels and Crooks

The essay begins in 1988, with the breaking news of the bombing of Pan Am Flight 103, a deadly terrorist attack over Lockerbie, Scotland, that killed all the passengers and flight crew on board. Keefe’s subject, Ken Dornstein, learned after reading the headlines that his brother David was on the plane. Dornstein was gutted by his brother’s loss, mourning his thwarted aspirations for a writing career.

Dornstein became quietly obsessed with the “murder mystery” (55) of the Pan Am tragedy—though it was later determined the bomb was in the luggage hold, the identity of those who built the bomb or placed it on board remains unknown. He found it a relief when he unexpectedly fell in love with and married Kathryn Geismar, an ex-girlfriend of David’s, as she understood the event that now defined him.

Early official investigations of the bombing and the Department of Justice’s initial findings implicated Libyan intelligence. In the 1980s, Libyan leader Muammar Qaddafi, however, denied responsibility for Lockerbie, and the accused did not stand international trial until 1998. After one intelligence agent was convicted, Qaddafi set up a victims’ compensation fund and tacitly admitted potential Libyan culpability. For his part, Dornstein believed there had to be more to the case, wondering “how could such a big act of mass murder have no author?” (56).

Dornstein became an investigative journalist, and in 2006 he wrote a book about David’s life and death. In 2011, he had the unexpected chance to go to Libya and seek answers, as the fall of Qaddafi’s government meant travel there would be safer for an American. Hoping to make a documentary film about his quest, Dornstein financed his journey to Libya with proceeds from the victim’s compensation fund, hiring an experienced cameraman. Dornstein had a list of likely suspects, but found that many of them had died in the tumult of Libya’s violent regime change. The one convicted Lockerbie suspect, Abdelset al-Megrahi, was living in Tripoli after compassionate release from prison, and Dornstein was furious when he refused a meeting. During these investigations, Dornstein began wearing a wire during his interviews, hoping to acquire definitive evidence.

More digging led Dornstein to a Swiss electronics expert named Bollier, who at one time testified about his travel to Libya during the lead up to the bombing. Dornstein was particularly drawn to one detail from Bollier’s initial interviews—Bollier’s meeting with a “very dark skinned” “colonel” in Libya (63). Dornstein found a declassified document revealing that Megrahi had traveled with a man matching that description, whose passport identified him as Abu Agila Ma’sud. Researching previous Libyan bombings in Europe, Dornstein found references to Ma’sud’s previous role in a 1986 Berlin bombing at a discotheque called La Belle. He used this to track down another La Belle bombing participant, Musbah Eter, hoping to confirm his role in Lockerbie. While pursuing these leads, Dornstein decided to discard his hidden camera, ashamed of his subterfuge.

In his conversations with Dornstein, Keefe focuses on Dornstein’s quest to confront the perpetrators and his drive to tell them, “I know what you did” (69). Dornstein is partly inspired by learning David had done the same before his death, confronting a man who had sexually abused him. Though Dornstein sometimes doubts his quest, and some of his own family considers it unhealthy, he continues his efforts.

Dornstein eventually discovers footage of the man he is likely seeking in Libya in 2012 with another Pan Am suspect; his sources confirm that the man is likely the bomber Ma’sud. At this stage, Dornstein realizes that apprehending or meeting Ma’sud would now be more difficult, as Libya’s political situation has deteriorated since Dornstein’s first trip. This means his documentary about David will not contain footage of his new evidence. More searching reveals that Ma’sud is in prison in Libya. As Dornstein accepts the impossibility of more proof, the Islamist group Libya Dawn offers him passage into the country to meet Ma’sud. He ultimately decides it is too dangerous, though the idea clearly tempts him.

Keefe interviews a former federal prosecutor who stresses that Dornstein’s success is not due to government incompetence, but rather the latitude afforded to journalists that government officials lack. Keefe closes by wondering if the documentary, or any single strand of evidence, will ever end Dornstein’s efforts. His wife assumes that “maybe this is a door that never gets closed” (78). In his brief afterword, Keefe indicates that Dornstein has since moved on to other projects.