MIAMI (AP) — A bail hearing has been delayed for a mechanic charged with sabotaging an American Airlines jetliner as part of a labor dispute.
Defense attorney Anthony Natale said at a hearing Wednesday he needed more time to prepare a bail argument for 60-year-old Abdul-Majeed Marouf Ahmed Alani. Prosecutors are seeking pretrial detention. Another hearing is set for Sept. 18.
Alani was arrested last week on a criminal complaint charging that in July he disabled an airliner with 150 people aboard at Miami International Airport because he was upset that ongoing labor negotiations were jeopardizing his chances at earning overtime. The aircraft did not take off and no one was injured.
Alani is a naturalized U.S. citizen originally from Iraq. Prosecutors have not filed any terrorism-related charges in the case.