American Airlines Mechanic Who Sabotaged Flight Linked to Possible Terrorist Organization

American Airlines mechanic Abdul-Majeed Marouf Ahmed Alani, who was charged in September with sabotaging a flight to Nassau, Bahamas back in July, was denied bond by a federal judge on Wednesday, Sept. 17, after being accused of having links to a terrorist organization, the Miami Herald reported.

Alani had apparently sabotaged the plane by blocking the air data module (ADM) system, which measures speed, pitch, and altitude of a plane.

An earlier story reported that Alani allegedly sabotaged the flight because he was upset about ongoing union contract disputes that has been dragging on for many months. At the time, Alani stated that he meant no harm and merely wanted to create more overtime, since the contract disputes had caused him some financial hardship.

According to the Miami Herald, prosecutors said investigators discovered Alani had lied to them about taking a trip to Iraq to visit his brother, whom he allegedly told a coworker was a member of ISIS.

In addition, investigators found a “disturbing” and violent “ISIS video,” according to the Miami Herald, which he sent to an unnamed recipient, as well as a money transfer of $700 to someone in Iraq.

Prosecutors said the affected plane’s pilot concluded in an interview that Alani’s actions “could have resulted in a crash,” though Alani’s public defender disputes these remarks as there was a secondary navigation system that was still working at the time.

“We don’t believe he intentionally endangered the safety of people,” Christian Dunham, Alani’s public defender, said in a statement to the Miami Herald. “I think the government is blowing this out of proportion.”

Alani is scheduled for arraignment for this charge on Friday. If convicted, he could face up to 20 years in prison.