A Saudi national arrested for planting a recording device in an OpenAI building was in constant touch with a member of the Saudi Royal Family, US prosecutors have said. Abdulrahman Alfozan was arrested on October 9 after it was discovered that he had hidden an encrypted recording device inside an OpenAI building in San Francisco.
He was an engineer at OpenAI earning a high base salary of $385,000, alongside substantial equity, until he was fired following his arrest.
The US deemed the 35-year-old a flight risk and denied bail, pending trial.
(Also read: Who is Abdulrahman Alfozan, OpenAI employee caught planting a recording device in office?)
Government’s argument for pretrial detention
In a court filing in California, US prosecutors said that Abdulrahman Alfozan’s wife and infant son departed the US for Saudi Arabia shortly after his arrest on business-class tickets paid for by a Saudi military official. His extended family resides in Saudi Arabia, and he no longer has job or family ties in the United States.
Alfozan was arrested just days before he was scheduled to fly to Saudi Arabia on a one-way ticket, they added.
{{/usCountry}}Alfozan was arrested just days before he was scheduled to fly to Saudi Arabia on a one-way ticket, they added.
{{/usCountry}}All these factors led to the former OpenAI engineer being deemed a flight risk.
(Also read: OpenAI engineer arrested over hidden recording device had booked one-way ticket to Saudi)
“He has ample resources—including his significant compensation from a decade of high-tech employment in the Bay Area and at least two bank accounts in Saudi Arabia—and what appears to be considerable support from a foreign government,” the court filing said.
"Ultimately, the defendant has little incentive to remain in the United States to see this case through," the prosecutors argued.
Kept in touch with Saudi royal
US prosecutors further claimed Alfozan was in "frequent communication... with a member of the Saudi royal family".
“Throughout 2025 and 2026, the defendant was in frequent communication via WhatsApp
with a member of the Saudi Royal Family, including as recently as October 5, 2026,” the court document stated.
The royal family member informed Alfozan about an artificial intelligence initiative launching in Saudi Arabia and repeatedly tried to recruit him to join it, asking when he planned to leave OpenAI.
In May 2026, the royal told Alfozan, "Saudi needs you more then [sic] the US!" to which Alfozan replied "100," indicating full agreement. When pressed on when he would leave OpenAI, Alfozan stated at the time that he would not leave until his stock vested.
The filing did not name the Saudi royal.