Newly revealed details regarding the life of Massachusetts Air National Guardsman Jack Teixeira, who has been accused of leaking hundreds of classified military documents, have raised questions with the Pentagon over his top-secret security clearance.
At first, Department of Defense officials faced questions about why a 21-year-old would have access to such documents. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin dismissed them by saying most of the military is young.But the details of Teixeira's high school suspension, which later prompted local law enforcement to reject his applications for a weapons license, will put additional scrutiny on the department's procedures and policies regarding classified intelligence.
Neither the comments that got him suspended nor being denied an FID stopped the military from giving him a “top secret” and “sensitive compartmented information,” or TS/SCI, security clearance in 2021.
Ryder said people in Teixeira's position, a cyber transport systems journeyman working in an intelligence wing, would"by default" include the handling of"a lot TS/SCI type of information, so that in and of itself, is not unusual." The government included in its filing social media posts purportedly from Teixeira from November 2022, saying that he would “kill a [expletive] ton of people” and that it would be “culling the weak-minded." He reportedly said in February of this year that he was tempted to make a minivan into an “assassination van.” In March of this year, prosecutors said, he described sports utility vehicles as “mobile gun trucks” and"[o]ff-road and good assassination vehicles.
Prosecutors have said he first began leaking paragraphs of text copied from classified documents in a Discord channel composed of a couple of dozen young men with similar interests back in December. About a month later, Teixeira started printing the documents out, taking them home, photographing them, and then posting them, according to his arrest affidavit.
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Massachusetts home invasion, assault may stem from online gaming dispute, police sayA Massachusetts resident was assaulted during a home invasion, possibly over an online gaming dispute, authorities said.
Read more »
Future of Pride event in Massachusetts town still uncertainThe future of a Pride event that included a drag show in a small Massachusetts town remains up in the air after town officials held another vote on whether to allow the event.
Read more »
Massachusetts man accused of killing missing wife allegedly thought she was having an affairBrian Walshe suspected his wife was having an affair in December 2022, prosecutors say. Walshe pleaded not guilty to killing his wife, mother of three Ana Walshe, who has been missing since New Year's Day.
Read more »
Massachusetts Air National guardsman in leak case wanted to kill a ‘ton of people,’ prosecutors sayThe Massachusetts Air National guardsman accused of leaking highly classified military documents had an arsenal of guns and said on social media that he would like to kill a “ton of people,” prosecutors said, arguing he should remain in jail for his trial.
Read more »
Slain Massachusetts mom Ana Walshe spent holiday in Ireland with mystery lover: court docsThe unidentified man also told police that he’d been having an affair with the mother-of-three for several months, according to a new report.
Read more »
A newly signed law requires hospitals to allow visitorsA bill signed by Governor Kay Ivey this morning says healthcare facilities must allow visitors even during a public health emergency.
Read more »