US Attorney General Merrick Garland confirmed the arrest in North Dighton, Massachusetts, shortly after news broke on the development, relaying to the media that Jack Douglas Teixeira had been taken into custody for the alleged unauthorized removal, retention and transmission of classified national defense information.
Garland noted Teixeira was a member of the US Air Force National Guard, and that he was taken into custody by FBI agents without incident. Teixeira is expected to make his initial court appearance at the US District Court for the District of Massachusetts.
In comments to Sputnik, the US Attorney's Office detailed that Teixeira will appear in court on Friday in Boston, Massachusetts. A time and date was not earlier stated by Garland.
A subsequent statement issued by the FBI further confirmed the arrest and stated that the agency was "continuing to conduct authorized law enforcement activity at the [Massachusetts] residence."
US media earlier reported that the leaker was a member of the Massachusetts Air National Guard, and that he had also led a small online gaming chat group where the leak of classified US intelligence documents on the conflict in Ukraine took place over the past months.
Teixeira is said to have been responsible for overseeing a private online group, Thug Shaker Central, with about 20 to 30 participants, who used the chat to discuss guns and share various memes.
Jack Teixeira identified as suspected leaker of US intel docs
© Photo : Twitter screenshot
Meanwhile, another American daily reported that the US authorities also believed an Air National Guardsman based at Fort Bragg was behind the leak of highly classified military documents online and could arrest the suspect on Thursday.
Most of the more than 60 documents that were posted online seem to have originated from the Central Intelligence Agency's Operations Center and the Pentagon's Joint Chiefs of Staff, the report said.
Pentagon Says Cannot Comment on Reports of Suspect in Intel Leaks Probe
The Pentagon is limited in what it can say about the classified documents that have been leaked and cannot comment on media reports of a potential suspect, Defense Department spokesperson Pat Ryder said on Thursday.
"We will also be very limited in what we can say about any of the documents themselves," Ryder said at a press briefing.
The spokesperson on media reports of a potential suspect said it is a law enforcement matter and he will not provide a comment.
What is Pentagon Leak 2023?
More than 100 classified US government documents have been leaked on social media sites in recent weeks, apparently showing sensitive intelligence documents on US efforts linked to the conflict in Ukraine and interactions with allies and partners.
In particular, the files provide intelligence on a range of sensitive security matters, including Ukrainian air defenses, Russian military activities, and US assessments of the conflict.
The documents also revealed that the US was conducting espionage not only on its opponents but also allies, which sparked deep concern among US officials who believe the situation might endanger the US sources and undermine important international ties.
All of the leaked documents reportedly were color printouts with text, graphics or maps, accessible to about 1,000 people prior to the incident.
The leaked materials, the veracity of which has not been confirmed by the US government, first appeared in a chat on the Discord social platform.
The group consisted of about 20 people, mostly men and boys, who did not pay much attention last year when a user who went by the nickname 'OG' posted messages containing "strange" acronyms and jargon. As per American media reports, the messages appeared to be "near-verbatim transcripts" of classified intelligence documents that 'OG' had "brought home" from his job at an unnamed military base.
On April 7, the US Federal Bureau of Investigation started its own inquiry into the source of the leaks. The US Department of Defense, in the meantime, has significantly reduced the number of employees who have access to classified information, according to US media. The Pentagon is also leading an interagency effort to determine the impact the leaks have on US national security.