Lawyer Says OpenAI Engineer’s One-Way Saudi Flight Was Prepaid

A federal complaint suggests a planned one-way flight to Saudi Arabia may have been intended to help former OpenAI employee Abdulrahman Alfozan flee the United States; his lawyer says the ticket had been prepaid.

The trip was scheduled for Monday, Oct. 12, for Alfozan, his wife and their child. The FBI arrested him Friday, Oct. 9. Attorney William Pernik said Alfozan was surprised by the search and arrest and called the allegations “wholly out of character.”

Pernik said he has limited information about the case and plans to respond more fully in court. He urged the public not to draw conclusions from Alfozan’s Saudi nationality, saying his client had spent years living, studying and raising a family in the United States.

The federal complaint identifies Alfozan as a Saudi national who has held U.S. legal permanent resident status since 2020. Prosecutors charged Alfozan over an alleged recorder in a room used for confidential company meetings, accusing him of using or attempting to use a device to intercept oral communications. The complaint alleges he placed the device on Sept. 28, and it was found during an OpenAI security sweep on Sept. 30.

OpenAI ended Alfozan’s employment on the day of his arrest. The FBI and OpenAI have found no evidence that he leaked information. Pernik said Alfozan was not charged with sharing trade secrets; the charge concerns a federal law against intercepting oral communications.

Pernik said he intends to address the case in court. Alfozan’s next court appearance is scheduled for Monday, Oct. 19.