"He engaged in a likely pattern of deception both to his probation officers and the court," Judge Suzanne Segal said in issuing her ruling.
The preliminary bail hearing began with Segal asking the defendant -- dressed in gray slacks and a white and yellow striped T-shirt, with handcuffs and chain around his waist -- what his true name was.
"Mark Basseley Yousseff," he replied.
The judge then asked again, what is your name?
"Mark Basseley," he said this time, again without spelling the name out.
The lawyer for the suspect, who has used at least 17 false names, according to court documents, but is mostly referred to as Nakoula, then argued for $10,000 bail.
Attorney Steve Seiden said his client had always maintained contact, in person and by telephone, with probation officers who have been monitoring him since his 2010 bank fraud conviction. But the main reason Nakoula shouldn't be jailed, his lawyer argued, was for safety reasons, saying the anti-Islam film would make him a target of fellow inmates.
"It is a danger for him to remain in custody at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Los Angeles because there are a large number of Muslims in there," Seiden said. "We are extremely concerned about his safety."
Making no mention of aliases, the lawyer added that Nakoula had made no attempt to flee Southern California and never would.
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