Culver City Man Detained in Egypt to Return Today

A Culver City man detained by Egyptian authorities for nearly a week has been released and was scheduled to return to Los Angeles today, U.S. government officials confirmed.

Abdul Ghafoor Mahboob, a 26-year-old naturalized U.S. citizen of Afghan descent, was detained at the Cairo airport last Friday as he prepared to return to California after studying Arabic since December. Mahboob “sounded well and high-spirited” in a phone call with U.S. consular officials, said his brother, Mostafa.

It remained unclear why Mahboob was detained. The U.S. Bureau for Consular Affairs in Washington could not divulge details because of privacy laws, a spokeswoman said. The Egyptian Embassy in Washington did not return calls.

The detention had mystified Mahboob’s family and friends, who said he was a devout and nonpolitical Muslim who did not belong to any militant organizations. Several speculated that it was a case of mistaken identity.

Mahboob immigrated to the United States in 1988 and worked as a fundraiser for an Islamic charity until last year.