A federal judge ordered Abdulrahman Alfozan, the 35-year-old former OpenAI engineer accused of bugging an executive meeting room, held without bail as a significant flight risk.
Key Points:
- The judge rejected a defense bid for home detention with GPS monitoring.
- Prosecutors say Alfozan messaged a Saudi royal and that a Saudi military official paid for his family's flights.
- The defense says he had a citizenship interview set for Nov. 6 and disputes the government's account.
Alfozan Bail Ruling
U.S. Magistrate Judge Alex Tse ruled Monday in San Francisco that "there is a risk of non-appearance that is significant." Alfozan, wearing orange jail clothes, did not speak during the hour-long hearing.
Prosecutors had argued that his ties to Saudi Arabia, which has no extradition treaty with the U.S., gave him both the means and the help to flee.
They say he messaged an unnamed member of the Saudi royal family on WhatsApp throughout 2025 and 2026, as recently as Oct. 5. The royal repeatedly tried to recruit him for an artificial intelligence initiative in the kingdom, writing in May that "Saudi needs you more then the US!"
Alfozan replied "100."
He was arrested Oct. 9, three days before a planned one-way flight to Riyadh with his wife and infant son. The mother and baby left the next day on business-class tickets that a Saudi military official bought, prosecutors say.
Also Read: Bitcoin Holds $80,000: A Pause Before Challenging $87,000?
Pernik Disputes Flight Risk
Defense attorney William Pernik told the court that Alfozan had a U.S. naturalization interview scheduled for Nov. 6, which he said showed no intent to leave.
The defense also countered that the Riyadh ticket was booked Sept. 13, before OpenAI found the recorder. It reportedly identified the buyer of the family's tickets as Alfozan's brother-in-law, who paid with his own money.
Prosecutors say OpenAI executives met with government officials in the bugged room around the time of the alleged recording, and they warned that the probe "may result in additional serious charges." The filing does not accuse Riyadh of directing the bugging.
The Justice Department unveiled the case Oct. 13, accusing Alfozan, who joined OpenAI in July 2025, of hiding a recorder behind a television in an executive conference room in late September. Security staff later found a second device in a bag he left in the building. OpenAI fired him after the arrest, and the charge of intercepting oral communications carries up to five years in prison.
Read Next: Crypto's 39.6% Rally Has A Problem: Spot Buyers Aren't Keeping Up
