Iowa City man who fled to Jordan in 2023 extradited from Chicago, charged

IOWA CITY — An Iowa City man who fled to Jordan to avoid attempted murder and other charges in May 2023 and then surrendered last week in Chicago was formally charged with escape Tuesday in Johnson County District Court.

Ali Younes, 21, was extradited from Chicago over the weekend after a self-surrender process that took place after his flight from Jordan landed at O’Hare International Airport on Aug. 27. The process was assisted by the University of Iowa Police Department and the U.S. Embassy in Jordan, police said last week.

Authorities said Younes voluntarily returned to the United States.

Younes has already been charged with attempted murder, first-degree robbery and first-degree theft for assaulting and choking a woman on the UI campus until she lost consciousness and then stealing $20,000 worth of earrings from her in April 2022, according to court documents. If convicted, he faces up to 60 years in prison.

Sixth Judicial District Judge Jason Burns, during a preliminary hearing Tuesday, announced that Younes faces an additional charge of escaping from custody by a felon, a class D felony.

Burns said Younes had an outstanding warrant for his arrest for failing to appear at a hearing last year on previous charges and rescheduled a temporary hearing for Sept. 13. He also will maintain his previous $500,000 bail, which remains in effect, and ordered special conditions that Younes surrender all of his passports — both U.S. and Jordanian — that he used to flee the country.

Burns said Younes also was charged Tuesday with a new charge — escaping custody — because he is accused of evading prosecution by fleeing the country. That charge carries a sentence of up to five years in prison.

Burns ordered bail set at $100,000 on that charge and imposed other special conditions consistent with those in the previous case.

According to court documents, Younes used his Jordanian travel documents to flee the country on May 6, 2023, after cutting off his electronic ankle bracelet as part of his pretrial release pending trial.

He lived in Sutherland, in northwest Iowa, with his parents, Alfred Ali Mohammad Younes, 49, and Lima Khairi Mohammad Younes, 45, who helped him escape and were convicted of aiding and abetting the commission of a crime.

UI police officials said last week that the department established and maintained an open line of communication with Younes following his arrival in Jordan and successfully facilitated his voluntary return with the support of the U.S. Embassy in Jordan.

“I would like to thank Det. Ian Mallory and our entire investigative team for their unwavering dedication to supporting victims of crime and refusing to give up on this case,” Chief Lucy Wiederholt said in a statement. “Their tireless work underscores their commitment to making our community a safer place.”

Younes cut off his monitoring bracelet before fleeing

Ali Younes appeared for a pretrial hearing on May 5, 2023, but cut off his court-ordered GPS monitor the next day, according to investigators. He received a reduced bond order from 6th Judicial District Judge Christopher Bruns during a contested hearing in June 2022.

His bail was reduced from $350,000 to $125,000, and a judge released him on several conditions — including that he wear a GPS monitor and remain isolated at home with his family in O’Brien County in northwestern Iowa until his trial.

Court documents show that on May 6, 2023, the Iowa State Police Tactical Team obtained a search warrant for the family’s Sutherland home, where Iowa police found Younes’ ankle monitor in the kitchen and missing SIM cards from his phones.

Alfred Younes was arrested May 9 by the Omaha Police Department’s Fugitive Apprehension Unit and the Omaha Airport Authority as he tried to board a flight in Omaha, according to court documents. He was headed to Amman, Jordan.

Lima Younes was arrested May 9 by UI police on a warrant issued with the assistance of the Sioux County Sheriff’s Office.

According to evidence presented during Lima Younes’ trial, the couple misled police about their son’s whereabouts, sold a car in another state and rented a van to conceal their trip to O’Hare Airport and allow their son to board a plane to Jordan.

Lima Younes was convicted by a jury and Alfred Younes pleaded guilty to the escape from custody charge, and both were sentenced to up to five years in prison.

Both Iowa parole boards granted early parole. Alfred had served more than five months and Lima more than seven months.

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