Jack Teixeira—the man previously suspected of leaking highly-classified US documents online, has been charged with the “unauthorized retention and transmission” of a trove of classified United States government documents on Friday (April 14).
Teixeira, a 21-year-old member of the National Guard from a small town in Massachusetts, is held accountable for allegedly leaking classified information regarding the conflict in the Ukraine and other subjects of national security.
At the time of his arrest, he was wearing shorts and a T-shirt, as seen on surveillance video taken at his Dighton house by the FBI. In Massachusetts, he will make his first court appearance on Friday.
According to US Attorney General Merrick Garland, he will be charged with espionage for allegedly obtaining and distributing sensitive material about the nation’s defences.
Teixeira was in charge of a group of about 20 to 30 young men who participated in a chat group.
He is suspected of posting images of top-secret and secret documents into the group between late 2016 and March 2017.
The information appeared to have been shared in an effort to impress the other members of the organisation, known as Thug Shaker Central, according to former members who spoke with media sources like the New York Times and Washington Post.
The information was then made public after being uploaded outside of the chat room group, which disgraced the Biden administration and led to a large search for the culprit.
According to sources, Teixeira joined the National Guard in 2019 and was a “cyber transport systems specialist,” which was a rather junior position.
Pentagon spokesman Brigadier General Patrick Ryder said: “We do have strict protocols in place, so any time there is an incident there’s an opportunity to review that and refine it.”
Defence officials have expressed concern over the leak, but the Biden administration has also been working aggressively to prevent any potential diplomatic ramifications.
The long-term effects of the leaks have been downplayed by Biden, who earlier on Thursday in Ireland told reporters that “there’s nothing contemporaneous that I’m aware of that is of great consequence.”
The head of the British Commons military select committee, however, has expressed concern that the leak, which contains details on the UK special forces, could “endanger lives.”
