Abdul-Majeed Marouf Ahmed Alani, 60, who allegedly disabled a navigation system on a flight from Miami International Airport, was denied bond during his court appearance earlier today, according to ABC 10 News.
Alani admitted to sabotaging the flight in mid-July, according to a federal criminal complaint, before its scheduled takeoff to Nassau, Bahamas. The accused claimed he was motivated by frustrations over stalled union contract discussions.
However, the plane never made it into the air. The pilot noticed an error with the air data module system during takeoff preparations and halted the flight. Upon investigation, a mechanic found a loosened tube connected to the air data module system.
“Further inspection revealed the ADM appeared to have been deliberately obstructed with what appeared to be a dark Styrofoam-type material,” Jose Ruiz, a Transportation Security Administration senior federal air marshal, said in an affidavit, reported ABC 10.
When authorities reviewed surveillance footage, they saw a man driving up to the aircraft in a white truck, according to Ruiz. The man, later identified as Alani, then got out of the vehicle and was seen accessing an area of the plane where its ADM is located. He spent roughly seven minutes tampering with equipment before driving away from the scene in the truck.
According to the affidavit, Alani admitted he inserted a piece of foam in the ADM and used super glue to hold it in place. “Alani stated that his intention was not to cause harm to the aircraft or its passengers,” Ruiz said. Alani claimed in the document that his intention was to cancel or delay the flight in order to secure overtime work. Authorities confirmed he worked four hours of overtime on the day of the incident.
Alani was denied bond after a judge determined that he posed a flight risk, reported NBC News. Prosecutors said the accused’s brother was an ISIS member and authorities allegedly found ISIS propaganda videos on and sent from Alani’s cellphone, one of which depicted people being shot and killed. Alani was born in Iraq but is a naturalized U.S. citizen.
Despite Alani’s attorney’s assertion that his client is not on any terror watch list, the judge determined that the evidence suggests the accused could be sympathetic to ISIS.
The flight Alani sabotaged was carrying 150 people before it was aborted. The accused faces up to 20 years in federal prison if convicted, according to his attorney.
“The safety of our customers and team members remains our top priority,” an American Airlines spokesperson said in a statement on Wednesday.
