Accused OpenAI Engineer Had Folder Called ‘Saudi Gov Docs,’ FBI Says

Judge orders continued detention

On Monday, Magistrate Judge Alex G. Tse ruled that Alfozan should remain in custody as he prepares his defense, Business Insider reported. The decision followed a government request to deny his release.

US attorney Craig Missakian argued that Alfozan had spied on OpenAI for personal business gain or to benefit Saudi Arabia. The government said he posed a flight risk and asked that he be detained pending trial.

FBI cites phone evidence

The government said Alfozan had been communicating on WhatsApp with a member of the Saudi royal family and pursuing a permanent move to Saudi Arabia. Shortly before his arrest, the FBI found that he had accessed an iPhone folder called “Saudi Gov Docs,” prosecutors said.

The phone also allegedly contained pictures of a second recording device. OpenAI had discovered a device in a conference room about two weeks before Alfozan’s planned trip; the filing said it had been there for multiple days, including during a top-secret meeting with US government officials.

The government said the alleged conduct could threaten US national security. The account ends before describing the full allegation about how Alfozan used an OpenAI productivity agent.

Prosecutors point to travel plans

Missakian said Alfozan had booked a one-way flight to Riyadh for himself, his wife and their baby. Prosecutors alleged that the Saudi government paid for the ticket. After his arrest, his wife and son booked an earlier flight and left the United States without him, the filing said.

The government further alleged that a Saudi military member booked and paid for another one-way ticket for Alfozan’s wife and son, this time in business class to Doha, Qatar. Alfozan’s Saudi passport was seized when he was arrested, but prosecutors argued he could obtain other travel documents.

The filing also said Alfozan had substantial resources from a decade of technology work in the Bay Area and at least two Saudi bank accounts. Prosecutors cited a separate case involving former Twitter employees charged with spying for Saudi Arabia, including a defendant who remains charged.

OpenAI employment and allegations

Alfozan, a Saudi national and US permanent resident, moved to the United States in 2009 and earned technical degrees from MIT and UC Berkeley. OpenAI hired him around July 2025 as an engineer, with a stated annual base salary of $325,000 and a new-hire equity grant valued at $2.2 million in profit participation units.

The government said OpenAI was preparing to grant him parental leave. His wife’s student visa had expired, and prosecutors said he planned to use two months of paid time off to help her and their baby move to Saudi Arabia.

The government alleged that the spying began in the months after his hiring. OpenAI discovered the recording device before Alfozan took the planned flight, and he was arrested days before the trip, according to the filing.