The United States Department of Justice says Jack Teixeira, a Portuguese-born American suspected of leaking thousands of classified Pentagon documents in recent months, should be detained indefinitely because of flight and evidence-destruction risks. states in an indictment document made known late Wednesday.
In the same document, Teixeira, 21, is portrayed as a young man with a past history of racist crimes and threats, and more dangerous than believed until he was arrested by the FBI in the state of Massachusetts two weeks ago. .
According to the Justice Department, Teixeira did not have the sole purpose of attracting other members of a channel on the Discord platform by revealing Pentagon secrets, and investigators suspect that the young man was planning a mass murder.
During a search of Teixeira’s home, where the teenager lived with his mother and stepfather, the FBI says they found “a small cache” of handguns. Guns and a weapon “higher firepower and similar to an AK-47”, according to Newspaper The The New York Times.
The same newspaper, citing the US Department of Justice’s indictment, said Teixeira posted several messages on social networks in 2022 and 2023, expressing his desire to kill “constant people” and eliminate “weak minds”.
According to investigators, Teixeira’s messages referred to the use of a “killer van” to kill people in an “urban or suburban environment.”
Obstruction of justice
The Justice Department, which asked the court not to release the teenager until a grand jury is empaneled and formally indicted, tried to obstruct investigators’ work in various ways when it realized he was about to be taken into custody, the Justice Department says. .
In addition to asking other members of his channel on the Discord platform to delete “all messages,” Teixeira allegedly destroyed various personal items, including a cell phone. pill And an Xbox console.
“These actions appear to be calculated to delay or prevent the government from realizing the gravity of its conduct,” the quoted document said. The New York Times.
“Any promise by the suspect that he will remain at home and not add to the damage he has already caused is worth less than keeping classified national security information confidential.”
Invasion of Ukraine
At the same time, US officials confirmed that the young man had begun disclosing classified information to the Pentagon. Average The Americans published the first news on the subject.
such as The New York Times Flash forward to Friday of last week, and Teixeira began sharing classified documents on February 24, 2022, hours after Russia invaded Ukraine. In a chat group with over 600 users.
Teixeira, a member of the Massachusetts Air National Guard — the reserve force that serves the state — worked as a computer technician and gained access. Passwords Used to enter a computer network.
In parallel with the investigation into the sharing of classified documents, the Pentagon launched an investigation to try to understand how Teixeira – a young man with no activities requiring access to classified information, and a history of threats and racist crimes on social networks – was. Thousands of confidential documents can be retrieved and printed.
Among the secrets revealed were examples of the US spying on some allies such as South Korea and UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, and details about the evolution of the war in Ukraine.
For example, the documents show that South Korea is feeling the pressure By sending US artillery munitions to the Ukrainian military, a decision contrary to the country’s laws; That’s what the Russian mercenary group Wagner tried Purchase arms to Türkiye, a member of NATO; and President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi of Egypt, ordered Production of tens of thousands Rockets The Defense Department receives billions of dollars a year to supply the Russian military against the policies of the country’s relationship with the United States.
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