Miami (CNN) A former American Airlines mechanic accused of trying to sabotage a commercial airliner pleaded guilty to attempted destruction of an aircraft in federal court.

Abdul-Majeed Marouf Ahmed Alani, 60, admitted that he intentionally tried to damage or disable an aircraft's air data module (ADM) system, which reports aircraft speed, pitch and other critical data, on July 17.

He "inserted a foam substance into the ADM system and used super glue to hold the substance in place," the US Attorney's Office said in a statement.

On Wednesday, Alani was led into a Miami federal court wearing shackles on his legs and answered the judge's questions through an interpreter. Several of Alani's relatives, including his wife, were present at the hearing.

"This case is about what you heard. Somebody taking responsibility for what he did," Alani's attorney, Jonathan Meltz, told reporters on Wednesday.

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