Jack Teixeira, a 21-year-old private in the Massachusetts National Guard Air Force who leaked classified documents from the U.S. Department of Defense, was charged with violating the Espionage Act on the 14th (local time).
According to foreign media outlets such as CNN, Teixeira was indicted on two counts of unauthorized storage and transmission of defense information under the Espionage Act and unauthorized leakage of classified and defense data.
According to the indictment, Teixeira worked as a cybertransmission specialist and was licensed to handle top-secret and secure information. He started posting document information online in December of last year, and is known to have posted pictures of documents since January of this year.
At first, he leaked it by copying it from his office, and was later investigated to have brought the document home and took a picture, fearing that it would be discovered. He even searched for the word ‘leakage’ in the classified military system after the leak was reported.
Teixeira posted this classified document on the chat platform Discord, which is mainly used by gamers, and spread it through Minecraft, 4Chan, pro-Russian group channels, and Twitter.
The leaked documents also included first-class confidential documents, including ‘SI’, which means telecommunication wiretapping, and ‘Noforn (NF)’, which prohibits sharing with foreign countries. It also included wiretapping of conversations between Kim Seong-han, former head of the National Security Office at the presidential office, and former foreign affairs secretary Lee Moon-hee, who are grappling with US pressure to support lethal weapons in connection with the war in Ukraine and violations of national policy.
He was arrested on the 13th at his home in Massachusetts. It has been exactly a week since the leak of classified documents became known.
He made his first appearance in federal court in Boston, Massachusetts at 10 am on the 14th, one day later. He was wearing a prison uniform and handcuffs.
At the hearing, federal prosecutors requested that he be held in custody pending trial. Judge David Hennessey decided to hold a hearing on the detention on the 19th of this month. Until then, detention will continue.
During the hearing, Teixeira briefly replied “yes” when the judge informed him of the defendant’s rights, including the right to remain silent. In court, when his father shouted, “Jack, I love you,” Teixeira said, “I love you too.”
Source: Donga
Mark Jones is a world traveler and journalist for News Rebeat. With a curious mind and a love of adventure, Mark brings a unique perspective to the latest global events and provides in-depth and thought-provoking coverage of the world at large.