Charged Former OpenAI Engineer Seeks Bail, Cites Pre-Investigation Flight Purchase

Lawyers for former OpenAI software engineer Abdulrahman Alfozan filed a request late Friday asking for his release on bail, arguing that his purchase of a one-way plane ticket to Saudi Arabia was not an attempt to flee US prosecution. Defense attorneys stated in the court filing that Alfozan purchased the Oct. 12 flight on Sept. 13—17 days before OpenAI discovered a hidden recording device planted behind a television in an executive conference room, and 26 days before his Oct. 9 arrest. The filing stated the trip was scheduled because his wife's US work authorization ended and immigration rules prevented her from remaining past Oct. 12, adding that buying one-way tickets was his standard practice to handle last-minute tech work obligations. Alfozan, a US permanent resident since 2020 who spent about six years at Meta before joining OpenAI in 2025, has the support of 54 character letters and the Consulate General of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for supervised release ahead of his Oct. 19 detention hearing before Magistrate Judge Alex G. Tse. "Buying a one-way ticket, then booking the return later, is how Mr. Alfozan has traveled for years." — Defense lawyers for Abdulrahman Alfozan.