UPDATED 3:41 P.M.
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The FBI on Thursday arrested a member of the U.S. Air National Guard over the leaks online of classified U.S. documents that embarrassed Washington with allies around the world.
Attorney General Merrick Garland said the Federal Bureau of Investigation arrested Jack Teixeira “in connection with an investigation into alleged unauthorized removal, retention, and transmission of classified national defense information.”
“FBI agents took Teixeira into custody earlier this afternoon without incident,” Garland told reporters in a brief statement at the Justice Department.
“This investigation is ongoing,” Garland said. He did not take questions.
The FBI said its agents had made an arrest and were conducting “authorized law enforcement activity at a residence in North Dighton, Massachusetts.”
Video played on news channels showed heavily armed officers accompanying a young man wearing a gray T-shirt and red shorts into a waiting car. His head was bowed and his hair was close-cropped.
FORMAL PROBE
U.S. officials have been hunting for weeks for the person responsible and assessing damage from the release of the intelligence reports, which first appeared on social media sites in March and purportedly reveal details of Ukrainian military vulnerabilities and information about allies including Israel, South Korea and Turkey.
The Department of Defense referred the matter to the Justice Department, which opened a formal criminal probe last week. The Pentagon is assessing the damage.
Reuters has reviewed more than 50 of the documents, labeled “Secret” and “Top Secret” but has not independently verified their authenticity. The number of documents leaked is likely to be over 100.
President Joe Biden, who is on a three-day tour of Ireland, said he was not overly concerned about the leak.
“There’s a full-blown investigation going on, as you know, with the intelligence community and the Justice Department, and they’re getting close but I don’t have an answer,” Biden told reporters.
“I’m not concerned about the leak. I’m concerned that it happened, but there is nothing contemporaneous that I’m aware of.”
A man named Jack Teixeira was promoted to Airman 1st Class in July, according to a post on the 102nd Intelligence Wing’s official Facebook page. The unit did not immediately return an email seeking comment.
A number of countries have questioned the veracity of some of the leaked documents, including Britain, which said there was “a serious level of inaccuracy” in the information.
DOCUMENTS ON UKRAINE, ISRAEL, SOUTH KOREA
Some of the most sensitive leaked details are purportedly related to Ukraine’s military capabilities and shortcomings, and information about U.S. allies.
Biden said earlier on Thursday that investigators were closing in on the source of the online leaks in what is believed to be the most serious security breach in years.
The New York Times earlier reported that Teixeira, 21, was a National Guardsman who led Thug Shaker Central, an online group where about 20 to 30 people shared their love of guns, racist memes and video games. The Times cited interviews and documents it reviewed.
(Reporting by Sarah N. Lynch and Idrees Ali; Additional reporting by Steve Holland in Dublin, Katharine Jackson, Susan Heavey, Jasper Ward and Raphael Satter in Washington, and Michelle Nichols at the United Nations; Writing by Alistair Bell and Patricia Zengerle; Editing by Don Durfee, Matthew Lewis and Daniel Wallis)
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WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The FBI on Thursday arrested an employee of the U.S. Air Force National Guard over the leaks online of classified U.S. documents that embarrassed Washington with allies around the world.
U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland said the FBI arrested the man, Jack Teixeira, “in connection with an investigation into alleged unauthorized removal, retention, and transmission of classified national defense information.”
The FBI said its agents had made an arrest and were conducting “authorized law enforcement activity at a residence in North Dighton, Massachusetts.”
Video images played on news channels showed heavily armed officers in Massachusetts accompanying a young man wearing a gray t-shirt and bright red shorts into a waiting car. His head was bowed and his hair was close-cropped.
The leaks were a “deliberate, criminal act,” the Pentagon said. Pentagon spokesman Brigadier General Pat Ryder referred questions about the investigation to the Department of Justice.
Some of the most sensitive leaked details are purportedly related to Ukraine’s military capabilities and shortcomings, and information about U.S. allies including Israel, South Korea and Turkey.
President Joe Biden earlier on Thursday said investigators were closing in on the source of the online leaks in what is believed to be the most serious security breach in years.
The New York Times earlier reported that Teixeira was a National Guardsman who led Thug Shaker Central, an online group where about 20 to 30 people shared their love of guns, racist memes and video games. The Times cited interviews and documents it reviewed.
(Reporting by Sarah N. Lynch and Idresss Ali, Additional reporting by Steve Holland in Dublin, Susan Heavey, Jasper Ward and Raphael Satter in Washington and Michelle Nichols at the United NationsWriting by Alistair BellEditing by Don Durfee and Matthew Lewis)
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UPDATED 1:08 P.M.
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – An Air National Guardsman suspected of leaking highly classified U.S. documents that have embarrassed Washington with allies around the world will be arrested on Thursday in Massachusetts, a source familiar with the situation told Reuters.
The source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, did not elaborate. A spokesperson for FBI headquarters did not respond to a Reuters request for comment.
U.S. President Joe Biden earlier on Thursday said investigators were closing in on the source of the leak in what is believed to be the most serious security breach in years.
Separately, the New York Times reported that the leader of an online group where the secret documents were posted is a member of the Massachusetts Air National Guard.
It named him as Jack Teixeira, a National Guardsman who led Thug Shaker Central, an online group where about 20 to 30 people shared their love of guns, racist memes and video games. The Times cited interviews and documents it reviewed. Reuters could not immediately confirm the guardsman’s identity.
The U.S. Department of Justice opened a formal criminal probe last week after the matter was referred by the Pentagon, which is assessing the damage.
Some of the most sensitive leaked details are purportedly related to Ukraine’s military capabilities and shortcomings, and information about U.S. allies including Israel, South Korea and Turkey.
Reuters has reviewed more than 50 of the documents, labeled “Secret” and “Top Secret” but has not independently verified their authenticity. The number of documents leaked is likely to be over 100.
Biden, on a three-day tour of Ireland, said he was not overly concerned about the leak.
“There’s a full-blown investigation going on, as you know, with the intelligence community and the Justice Department, and they’re getting close but I don’t have an answer,” Biden told reporters.
“I’m not concerned about the leak, I’m concerned that it happened but there is nothing contemporaneous that I’m aware of.”
The FBI Washington field office is leading the investigation, according to a person familiar with the matter.
A man with the same name as that mentioned by the New York Times, Jack Teixeira, was promoted to Airman 1st Class last July, according to a post on the 102nd Intelligence Wing’s official Facebook page. The unit did not immediately return an email seeking comment.
A number of countries have questioned the veracity of some of the leaked documents, including Britain, which said there was “a serious level of inaccuracy” in the information.
The person who leaked the documents is a gun enthusiast in his 20s who worked on a military base, the Washington Post reported on Wednesday, citing members of an online chat group.
SOURCE OF LEAK
The Post based its report, which did not name the person, on interviews with two members of the Discord chat group. Discord said in a statement that it was cooperating with law enforcement.
Reuters was unable to verify details of the report. Its broad outlines – that the documents were first shared on a Discord server for gun and ammo enthusiasts who often swapped offensive jokes – were initially reported by Netherlands-based investigative journalism group Bellingcat last week.
Since the leak first came to light in March, investigators have been pursuing theories ranging from someone simply sharing the documents to show off the work they were doing to a mole inside the U.S. intelligence community or military.
The leaks have drawn responses from foreign partners of the United States.
On Sunday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office labeled as “mendacious and without any foundation whatsoever” a document asserting that the Mossad intelligence agency encouraged recent protests against him.
A South Korean presidential official said on Sunday the country planned to discuss “issues raised” in the leaked documents with Washington.
(Reporting by Steve Holland in Dublin; Additional reporting by Raphael Satter and Sarah N. Lynch in Washington and Michelle Nichols at United Nations; Writing by Alistair Bell; Editing by Don Durfee and Matthew Lewis)
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UPDATED 12:47 P.M.
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – An Air National Guardsman suspected of leaking highly classified U.S. documents will be arrested on Thursday in Massachusetts, a source familiar with the situation told Reuters.
The source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, did not elaborate. The FBI did not immediately respond to a request for comment on developments in the investigation.
The Department of Justice opened a formal criminal probe last week and the Pentagon is assessing the damage done by what may be the most damaging release of classified U.S. information in years.
The New York Times reported that the leader of an online group where the secret documents were posted is a member of the Massachusetts Air National Guard.
Named Jack Teixeira, the national guardsman led Thug Shaker Central, an online group where about 20 to 30 people shared their love of guns, racist memes and video games, the Times said, citing interviews and documents it reviewed.
U.S. President Joe Biden earlier on Thursday said investigators were closing in on the source of the leak.
(Reporting by Katharine Jackson and Jasper Ward; editing by Susan Heavey and Alistair Bell)
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(Reuters) – The person who leaked U.S. classified documents prompting a national security investigation is a gun enthusiast in his 20s who worked on a military base, the Washington Post reported on Wednesday, citing fellow members of an online chat group.
The person shared classified information to a group on the instant messaging platform Discord of about two dozen men and young boys who shared a “mutual love of guns, military gear and God,” the Post said.
The Post based its report, which did not name the person, on interviews with two members of the Discord chat group.
Reuters was unable to verify details of the report.
Discord said in a statement earlier on Wednesday that it was cooperating with law enforcement.
The Department of Defense and the Department of Justice did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.
The Department of Justice opened a formal criminal probe last week after the matter was referred by the Pentagon, which is assessing the damage done by what may be the most damaging release of classified U.S. information in years.
The person went by the handle OG, slang for Original Gangster, or an old school traditionalist. The person was described by one of the Post’s sources as being in his early to mid-20s, and was looked up to by members of the group.
“He’s fit. He’s strong. He’s armed. He’s trained. Just about everything you can expect out of some sort of crazy movie,” said one member of the chat group, who was under 18 and spoke on the condition of anonymity with the permission of his mother, the Post reported.
In what appears to be the gravest leak of U.S. secrets in years, pictures of sensitive documents were posed on Discord and other platforms including the online messaging board 4Chan, the encrypted Telegram global messaging app, and Twitter.
U.S. national security agencies and the Justice Department are investigating the release to assess the damage to national security and relations with allies and other countries, including Ukraine.
(Reporting by Daniel Trotta and Idrees Ali; Editing by Don Durfee and Raju Gopalakrishnan)
