Abdulrahman Alfozan, the Saudi-born OpenAI software engineer charged with using a hidden recording device in one of the company's offices, has asked to be released from custody and denied that buying a one-way ticket to Saudi Arabia was part of a plan to flee US justice. His lawyers filed a bail request on the evening of October 16, saying the ticket was bought on September 13 — 17 days before OpenAI found the device and 26 days before his October 9 arrest — and that the October 12 departure was set to meet a deadline tied to his wife's expiring work permit. Prosecutors said Alfozan, his wife and another family member bought one-way tickets from San Francisco via Istanbul to Saudi Arabia; the defense also said the Saudi consulate general supports his release under strict conditions, 54 people wrote to the court in support, and a detention hearing is set for October 19 in San Francisco federal court.