Top Republican demands to know why leak went unnoticed
How did it take MONTHS to track down suspect in massive Pentagon leak? Top Republican on intelligence committee demands to know why Discord chatroom leak went unnoticed
- Rep. Mike Turner wants to know why the suspect took months to track down
- FBI investigators are expected to interview the alleged ringleader Jack Teixeira
- Turner says Teixeira treated docs ‘like a game’ and called the leaks ‘chilling’
The Republican chairman on the House Intelligence Committee is demanding to know why the suspect in the massive Pentagon leak took months to track down despite posting about it on Discord.
FBI investigators have arrested Jack Teixeira, the 21-year-old suspected of being behind the biggest US intelligence leak in nearly a decade.
In a statement, Representative Mike Turner of Ohio, who heads the intelligence committee as well as a member of the armed services committee, is demanding answers on why it took several months to find him.
‘Leaking classified information jeopardizes our national security, negatively impacts our relationship with our allies, and places the safety of U.S. military and intelligence personnel at grave risk,’ said Turner.
‘While we seek to learn the extent of classified information released and how to mitigate the fallout, the House Intelligence Committee will examine why this happened, why it went unnoticed for weeks, and how to prevent future leaks.’
Representative Mike Turner of Ohio, who heads the intelligence committee as well as a member of the armed services committee, is demanding answers on why it took several months to find him
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‘Congratulations to law enforcement for locating and apprehending the alleged criminal,’ he added.
Attorney General Merrick Garland confirmed that the National Guardsman had been arrested in North Dighton, Massachusetts ‘without incident’.
He said Teixeira will appear in a local court as part of the investigation into ‘alleged unauthorized removal, retention and transmissions of classified national defense information.’
It is the most embarrassing security breach for any US administration since WikiLeaks obtained more than 700,000 classified documents and diplomatic cables in 2013.
In an interview with MSNBC Thursday, Turner called the entire situation ‘disturbing’ noting how these classified documents were treated ‘like a game’ by Teixeira.
‘This is a crime. This is espionage, and this involves real people,’ says Turner. ‘This could hurt real people and real people could be killed and lose their lives over leaks of classified information. To make this all the way down to where it seems almost like a game to these individuals is certainly very chilling.’
He also called the leaks ‘dangerous’ because the Discord rooms Teixeira was allegedly using could’ve allowed foreign actors, some who might be ‘kids,’ according to Turner.
‘What do we need to do to make sure our classified information is held more closely? How do we find these people before they do this? Before classified documents are compromised,’ he wondered.
Turner also disagreed with President Joe Biden that the leaks were ‘not of consequence’ but said that he understood the president as trying to relate that there were ‘different types of leaks” and all of them needed to be stopped.
Teixeira was a member of the intelligence wing of the Massachusetts Air National Guard and the ringleader of an online chat group where he allegedly published top secret Pentagon documents under the username ‘Jack the dripper’.
News helicopter footage showed the suspect, in red shorts with his hands behind his back, being placed by heavily-armed agents into an unmarked sports utility vehicle.
The FBI said in a statement that its officers are ‘continuing to conduct authorized law enforcement activity at the residence’ where the suspect was arrested.
And in unusually blunt remarks, it vowed to push on with ‘identifying, pursuing, and holding accountable those who betray our country’s trust and put our national security at risk.’
Teixeira’s identity was first revealed by the New York Times after a scandal-hit week for US President Joe Biden as the secret dossiers circulated online.
Jack Teixeira, the leader of the Thug Shaker Central chat group on Discord, was named by the New York Times as one of the men who could be behind one of the biggest national security breaches in the last decade
The 21-year-old is expected to appear in a Massachusetts court in connection with the leaking of classified information
US network CNN carried these images of Teixeira’s arrest after he was named by the New York Times earlier on Thursday
The inside of Teixeira’s childhood home in Bristol, Massachusetts, matched photos of the sensitive files on US intelligence and the Ukraine war which have been shared on forums since the end of last year, according to the Times.
The FBI will now question Teixeira, whose mother Dawn confirmed to the Times that he is an active member working out of a base in Cape Cod and has been taking more night shifts.
His role involved working on transporting cyber security equipment.
Brandon Van Grack, a former Justice Department national security prosecutor now with the law firm Morrison Foerster, said the likely charges could carry up to 10 years’ imprisonment, even if Teixeira did not intend to cause harm.
‘I think this is someone who is facing on the higher end of exposure for years in prison because the leaks were so damaging,’ Van Grack said.
The Attorney’s Office in Boston said Teixeira is expected to make his initial appearance on Friday.
His arrest comes after President Joe Biden said during the third day of his Ireland trip that investigators were ‘getting closer’ to finding out the source.
Police set up a roadblock outside Jack Teixeira’s house in North Dighton, Massachusetts, after his identity was revealed by the New York Times
The inside of Teixeira’s childhood home in Bristol, Massachusetts, matched photos of the sensitive files on US intelligence and the Ukraine war which have been shared on forums since the end of last year, according to the Times
Biden also said he wasn’t ‘concerned’ about the sharing of the documents that threatened to risk American assets around the world because the information is not ‘contemporaneous’
The intelligence included in the files have included information suggesting Ukraine will soon run out of artillery and potentially risking U.S. intelligence sources around the world.
Pentagon spokesman Brigadier General Pat Ryder called the leak of classified information a ‘deliberate, criminal act.’
Dozens of teenagers and young adults are said to make up the group where those files were posted and have been described as ‘like-minded’ individuals.
Two members of the chat room described the suspect to the The Washington Post on Wednesday night.
‘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,’ one of the members said.
He described him as ‘a young, charismatic man who loves nature, God, shooting guns and racing cars.’
Amid an intense search for the source of the leaks, The Washington Post reported they had seen video and photos of the man, as well as recordings of his interactions with members of the group.
In a video seen by The Post, the man is seen at a shooting range with a large rifle, wearing safety glasses and ear coverings. The man looks into the camera and yells racial and anti-Semitic insults, then fires multiple rounds at a target.
The New York Times reported that they were able to link Teixeira to other members of the online group through his gaming profiles.
One of the leaked documents, which have been posted online, that sparked a FBI hunt for the source and a criminal investigation
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