NATIONWIDE -- Could the embattled oil company BP have played a role in the release of the Lockerbie bomber? Senator Charles Schumer says it's a possibility, and wants the federal government to find out.

Schumer says BP has substantial assets in Libya, and he's asking the U.S. Justice Department to investigate whether they engaged in an illegal deal to secure Abdel Baset al-Megrahi's release in exchange for access to Libyan oil fields.

Al-Megrahi, who was the only person ever convicted in the Pan Am Flight 103 bombing, was released after a doctor said he had three months to live because of cancer. The same doctor now says he could live another ten years.

Senator Schumer, along with other colleagues is trying to have him put back behind bars, but the Scottish government is refusing to investigate.