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Judge Keeps Former OpenAI Engineer in Custody in Saudi-Linked Case
A San Francisco judge denied release to former OpenAI engineer Abdulrahman Alfozan, who is charged with trying to intercept oral communications. Prosecutors cite alleged Saudi royal contacts, a folder named “Saudi Gov Docs” and plans to tra
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A San Francisco judge on Monday ordered former OpenAI engineer Abdulrahman Alfozan to remain in custody as he fights a charge of trying to intercept oral communications. Prosecutors argue that he could flee to Saudi Arabia, citing a one-way family flight booking, alleged contact with a member of the Saudi royal family and a folder on his phone named “Saudi Gov Docs.”
The detention ruling followed a hearing before U.S. Magistrate Judge Alex G. Tse. Alfozan’s lawyers proposed home confinement, electronic monitoring and a bond, but the judge questioned whether those conditions could ensure Alfozan would return to court. “There is a real threat here that once he leaves, the case is over,” Tse said, according to Business Insider’s account of the hearing.
The government’s case for detention
In a detention memorandum filed October 18, federal prosecutors say Alfozan had planned to fly from San Francisco to Riyadh with his wife and infant son on October 12. He was arrested on October 9. His wife and son left the United States the following day on a one-way ticket to Doha, Qatar, which prosecutors say a Saudi military official booked and paid for after a Saudi-government-paid flight to Jeddah was canceled.
Prosecutors also say Alfozan communicated frequently on WhatsApp with an unnamed member of the Saudi royal family during 2025 and 2026, including on October 5, four days before his arrest. In May, the royal family member allegedly urged him to join a Saudi artificial-intelligence initiative, writing, “Saudi needs you more then [sic] the US!” The filing says Alfozan replied “100” and said he would not leave OpenAI until his stock vested.
The government says Alfozan had accessed a folder called “Saudi Gov Docs” on October 4. Its memorandum does not disclose the folder’s contents. Prosecutors also cite questions Alfozan allegedly put to an OpenAI productivity agent about Saudi government engagements, including which company leaders might attend a meeting with Saudi ministers.
What prosecutors say happened at OpenAI
The charge stems from a recording device found on September 30 in an executive conference room at an OpenAI building in San Francisco. The Justice Department says it was concealed in toilet paper and plugged into a USB port on the back of a television. OpenAI determined it had been installed around September 28 and that its contents were encrypted, prosecutors say.
The detention memo says the room hosted discussions of confidential technical, commercial and strategic information, including proprietary research and government engagements. Prosecutors allege that Alfozan used an AI chatbot account associated with his wife to research how to build, modify and encrypt recording devices. They also say security staff found a second similar device in a bag he had left in a printer room.
After a search of Alfozan’s home and an initial review of his phone, prosecutors said they found electronic components similar to those in the devices, photographs that appeared to show another concealed recorder, and images of equipment panels in OpenAI buildings. The filing says investigators’ work is continuing and that additional charges may follow.
Alfozan denies that the trip meant he would flee
Alfozan is charged with using or attempting to use a device to intercept oral communications, an offense that carries a maximum five-year prison term if he is convicted. The charge does not itself establish that he acted for Saudi Arabia. Prosecutors say he may have acted for personal gain, to aid a foreign government, or both; their detention request argues that the alleged conduct and his ties abroad make release unsafe.
His lawyer, William Pernik, argued for release with monitoring and financial guarantees, telling the judge, “Everything this man has, he's willing to surrender, and say, 'I'm not going anywhere.'” The defense has said the family’s travel plans were made before Alfozan knew of the investigation and were tied to family and immigration matters. Alfozan is a Saudi national and U.S. lawful permanent resident who had applied for naturalization, according to the court filing.
The distinction between the charge and the government’s broader allegations matters: prosecutors have described suspected recording and possible foreign-government ties, but the filing does not say investigators have established that Saudi officials directed the alleged surveillance. For now, Alfozan remains in custody while the case proceeds, and the government says its investigation is ongoing.