For days it was puzzling over who was behind one of the biggest secret service scandals in the USA. Now there is a face to the affair. For the US government, however, the matter is far from over.
After the arrest of a 21-year-old military employee because of the massive secret service data leak in the USA, the young man appeared in court for the first time. The broadcaster CNN reported that the member of the National Guard from the state of Massachusetts had been brought before a judge in Boston. Details were not initially known.
The FBI arrested the man named Jack Teixeira on Thursday. Attorney General Merrick Garland said he was taken into custody in connection with the “unauthorized removal, storage and transmission of classified information.” If charged and later convicted, he could face a long prison sentence.
Secret documents from US agencies on the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine have been circulating on the Internet for weeks: information on arms deliveries, assessments of what is happening in the war. But also details of alleged US spying against partners. It is unclear what is authentic and what could possibly have been edited.
Material circulated online for weeks
US media first reported on the leak shortly before Easter without publishing the documents themselves. According to Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, he only found out about the data leak a week ago, although the material had been floating around the web for weeks. After that, the government rotated to placate partners and most importantly to find the leak. The government initiated investigations that led to the arrest a few days later.
Shortly before, US media had already circulated numerous details about the alleged mole. The man is said to have run a chat group on the Discord platform popular with video gamers. He initially shared the explosive documents with the group as copies and later uploaded photos of printed documents there.
According to media reports, Teixeira disclosed the secret information in the closed chat group for months until someone else from the group also posted sensitive details outside of the chat room. The secret documents eventually spread more and more on the Internet until the media and US authorities finally became aware of them.
For the US government, not only the security gap itself and the disclosure of sensitive material is a problem, but also the external impact on the international stage: Questions arise about how reliable the US is, how well it keeps its secrets and those of its partners protect and how loyal they are to allies.
Ministry of Defense is investigating the incident
The chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, Republican Mike Turner, complained that the release of classified information not only endangers US national security, but also negatively affects relations with international partners. He wrote on Twitter that they were still trying to find out how much classified information had leaked out and how the consequences could be mitigated. His committee will also investigate “why this happened, why it went unnoticed for weeks and how to prevent future leaks.”
In view of the affair, the US Department of Defense wants to review access to intelligence information. Austin said he had commissioned an investigation into access to intelligence within his department. Control procedures would also be checked to prevent “such an incident from happening again”. Austin stressed that every US military member and Pentagon employee with access to classified documents has a legal and moral duty to protect them and report suspicious activity.
Source: Stern
I have been working in the news industry for over 6 years, first as a reporter and now as an editor. I have covered politics extensively, and my work has appeared in major newspapers and online news outlets around the world. In addition to my writing, I also contribute regularly to 24 Hours World.
