Ex-OpenAI Engineer Faced Flight Risk to Saudi Arabia Before Arrest in Recording Device Case
Federal prosecutors reveal former OpenAI engineer Abdulrahman Alfozan booked one-way tickets to Saudi Arabia before his arrest for planting a recording device.
POLICY WIRE — Washington, USA — Federal prosecutors have disclosed that a former OpenAI engineer accused of installing a clandestine recording device had secured one-way travel to Saudi Arabia. Court documents unsealed following the arrest of 35-year-old Abdulrahman Alfozan reveal that authorities feared the suspect would flee the country if the investigation became public.
Alfozan, a Saudi national, was taken into custody by the FBI on October 9. Prosecutors, including U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of California Craig Missakian, noted in an October 8 filing that Alfozan, his spouse, and another family member held reservations for a flight from San Francisco to Saudi Arabia, via Istanbul, scheduled for October 12, 2026.
The government alleges that Alfozan received what appears to be considerable support from the Saudi government. He made his initial court appearance on Wednesday to face charges of using an electronic, mechanical, or other device to intercept oral communications, a felony offense that carries a potential five-year prison sentence.
The criminal complaint details that OpenAI discovered a USB-based recording device hidden behind a television in an executive conference room. The hardware had been concealed within toilet paper. OpenAI stated that it utilized its own internal models to analyze the device and trace its origins, ultimately identifying that a specific employee had placed it there days earlier.
Reporting by Policy-Wire (PW)
