A Massachusetts Air National Guardsman arrested over a leak of highly classified military documents has been ordered to remain behind bars.
ADVERTISEMENTA Massachusetts Air National Guardsman arrested in the leak of highly classified military documents has been ordered to remain behind bars pending a hearing next week.
Jack Teixeira appeared in federal court in Boston on Friday, one day after his arrest. A federal magistrate judge ordered him jailed until at least a detention hearing set for next Wednesday.
Justice Department prosecutors are expected to reveal new details about the allegations while unsealing a criminal complaint in Boston charging Teixeira under an Espionage Act provision that makes it a crime to remove, retain or transmit national defence information.
Since Thursday, aerial images of the arrest of Teixeira in a t-shirt and shorts slowly backing away with his hands on his head toward the armed agents have been circulated across the world.
He is suspected of having posed a "very serious" risk to the national security of the United States, according to the Pentagon, by disclosing online confidential documents.
The documents range from briefing slides mapping out Ukrainian military positions to assessments of international support for Ukraine and other sensitive topics, including under what circumstances Russian President Vladimir Putin might use nuclear weapons.
The classified documents have not been individually authenticated by US officials.
Teixeira is suspected of having shared classified documents on a private online group of the social network Discord.
The group was composed of about 24 people, some of whom came from Russia and Ukraine. It formed as early as 2020 around a mutual passion for guns, military hardware and religion, according to the New York Times and Washington Post.
The FBI identified Teixeira through the billing records of an unnamed social media platform, according to court records unsealed Friday.
The Biden administration has scrambled to contain the potential diplomatic and military fallout from the leaks since they were first reported last week, moving to assure allies and assess the scope of the damage.
It was not immediately clear how Teixeira would have had access to the records.