Jack Teixeira, a member of the Massachusetts Air National Guard, was arrested in Massachusetts on Thursday in connection to a leak online of classified US intelligence.
The leaked documents appeared last month on the social media platform Discord, according to screenshots of the posts reviewed by CNN. Teixeira, 21, is believed to be the leader of a Discord chat group where the documents were posted, multiple US officials told CNN.
The documents included detailed intelligence assessments of allies and adversaries alike, including the state of the war in Ukraine.
The Pentagon has begun to limit who across the government receives its highly classified daily intelligence briefs following the leak.
The arrest: The suspect was under surveillance for at least a couple of days prior to his arrest, according to a US government source familiar with the case. He was expected to go to work Thursday where the FBI intended to take him into custody under more controlled circumstances, according to the source.
When the suspect did not go to work, agents who were already positioned outside his mother’s house, waited for the suspect to come out, the source said. This search and arrest effort accelerated when reporters for The New York Times knocked on the house door and spoke to people inside.
Here's what else we know about the suspect:
- Teixeira grew up in the suburbs of Providence, Rhode Island, according to public records. He attended Dighton-Rehoboth High School where he graduated in 2020, the superintendent of the regional school district said.
- He entered the Air National Guard on Sept 26, 2019, according to the Defense Department.
- His official job is Cyber Transport Systems journeyman. According to the Air Force, Cyber Transport Systems specialists are tasked with making sure the service’s "vast, global communications network" is operating correctly.
- He was recently promoted to the rank of Airman 1st Class, which is the third enlisted rank an airman will make. According to his record, Teixeira had earned one Air Force Achievement Medal, which is a relatively standard medal for airmen of that age and rank to receive.
- Attorney General Merrick Garland said Teixeira was arrested in connection with the alleged unauthorized removal, retention and transmission of classified national defense information.
- Teixeira will first appear in court on Friday in Boston, according to the US attorney’s office there.
