The former OpenAI engineer accused of bugging a company conference room must stay in custody while he awaits trial, a federal judge ruled on Monday after expressing concerns about his ties to Saudi Arabia.

US prosecutors allege Abdulrahman Alfozan is a flight risk because the Saudi Arabian government has offered to support him with no strings attached. They cited, for example, the Saudi consulate’s offer to work with a bail bonds firm to help fund Alfozan’s release.

Alfozan faces five years in prison on a single count of using a device to intercept communications, but prosecutors say additional charges are possible. Included among the government’s evidence are alleged conversations between Alfozan and an AI chatbot in which he asked for help setting up listening devices.

OpenAI found the device in late September, connected it to Alfozan, and then fired him earlier this month just before the FBI arrested him. Authorities say they also found components for recording devices at Alfozan’s home and photos of other OpenAI monitors and another OpenAI conference room on his phone. OpenAI previously said it recovered a second listening device in a bag Alfozan brought to the office and left unattended.

The case has drawn international attention for the alleged amateur spycraft and geopolitical tensions at the center of it. While Alfozan’s attorneys claim he is a US permanent resident who has been on the path to citizenship for 15 years, his ties to his native Saudi Arabia have come under scrutiny.