A Montreal man accused of stabbing an airport police officer at a Michigan airport was denied bail Wednesday and will remain in custody.

Amor Ftouhi was wearing a medical mask and repeatedly muttered "Allahu akbar" (literally, it "God is great") when he appeared at a bail hearing. Police have alleged Ftouhi yelled that phrase as he stabbed Lt. Jeff Neville in the neck a week ago at Bishop International Airport.

Authorities identify Canadian resident Amor Ftouhi as the suspected attacker 1:28

Ftouhi, a 49-year-old native of Tunisia, is charged with committing violence at an airport.

Joan Morgan, a lawyer for Ftouhi, did not object to the government's request that he stay in jail. Morgan said he would be held by U.S. immigration authorities even if he were granted bail. Court officials would not confirm where he is being held in custody.

Despite sustaining a 30-centimetre wound that doctors say narrowly missed nerves and major arteries, Neville was released from hospital Monday.

Lt. Jeff Neville was stabbed in the neck while working at the Bishop International Airport on June 21. (Jeff Neville/LinkedIn)

Ftouhi previously told court officials he has lived in Canada for a decade and has three children.

The FBI believes he crossed into the United States at Champlain, N.Y., on June 16 and arrived in Michigan two days later.

Before travelling to Flint, he lived in an apartment in Montreal's St-Michel neighbourhood, where neighbours described him as a "good person" who tended to keep to himself.

The FBI said Ftouhi bought a knife during his five days in the U.S., and was unsuccessful at trying to buy a gun.

Ftouhi is next scheduled to appear in court July 5 for a preliminary hearing.