Massachusetts Air National Guard Member Arrested for Leaking Classified US Government Documents

A 21-year-old Massachusetts man, Jack Teixeira, made his first court appearance Friday after being arrested by the FBI on Thursday in connection with the leaking of a trove of classified US government documents.

Teixeira, an airman in the Massachusetts Air National Guard, is facing charges of unauthorized retention and transmission of national defense information and unauthorized removal and retention of classified documents.

According to an affadavit filed by an FBI special agent, Teixeira was granted Top Secret security clearance in 2021. He joined the Massachusetts Air National Guard in September 2019 and maintained sensitive compartmented information.

Teixeira is scheduled to have a detention hearing on Wednesday and will remain detained until then. Attorney General Merrick Garland said Teixeira was arrested without incident.

Several former high school classmates of Teixeira told CNN that he had a fascination with the military, guns and war. If convicted, Teixeira could face years in prison.