Apparently, the suspect in the OpenAI complaint booked a one-way trip to Saudi Arabia.

U.S. prosecutors in the court case say Abdulrahman Al-Fawzan, a Saudi national, was scheduled to fly to Saudi Arabia on October 12.

US prosecutors have alleged that the Saudi citizen accused of stealing from OpenAI's headquarters booked a one-way flight to Saudi Arabia before his arrest.

Abdul Rahman Al-Fawzan, a former OpenAI engineer, was scheduled to fly to Saudi Arabia on Oct. 12 with his wife and another family member, prosecutors said in a court filing on Wednesday.

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The FBI arrested Alfuzan, who worked at OpenAI for about 15 months until his termination last week, on Oct. 9 after OpenAI personnel reported discovering a hidden eavesdropping device in a conference room at the company's San Francisco headquarters.

Alfozan, 35, is charged with "using or attempting to use an electronic, mechanical or other device to intercept oral communications."

This crime carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison and a fine of $250,000.

Prosecutors disclosed the alleged flight booking to a judge on Oct. 8 in a motion to seal the criminal complaint against Alfozan, arguing that he had the "means — and motive — to flee" the United States.

Alfozan's lawyer, William Pernik, said he and his client planned to challenge the criminal charges and his client's continued detention in court.

"We trust that the American justice system will treat our client fairly, despite the narrative being painted in the media at this time," Pernick told Al Jazeera.

"Our client is a recognized professional with longstanding relationships with the community," Pernick added.

He is presumed innocent and deserves fair treatment and due process. "The emphasis on his national origin, and therefore the suggestion that he should not be trusted or risk flight, harkens back to dark chapters in our nation's history that we intend to combat fully."

Alfozan's arrest has drawn attention to concerns that cross-border tech companies are being targeted for espionage and industrial espionage amid a global race to gain the upper hand in artificial intelligence.

Before joining OpenAI last July, Alfozan worked as a systems engineer at Meta and interned at Microsoft, according to his LinkedIn profile.

Alfozan is also listed as a venture partner at Raed Ventures, a Riyadh-based venture capital firm, whose other partners include Prince Khalid bin Bandar bin Sultan bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, a member of the Saudi royal family.

In a statement announcing Alfozan's appointment in February 2025, Raed Ventures described the engineer as "a seasoned professional with extensive experience in technology startups" and said his role would include "identifying promising investment opportunities and supporting startups on their path to growth and success."