A man appeared before a federal court in Boston charged with two counts under the Espionage Act, said US attorney’s office for Massachusetts on Friday.
Jack Teixeira, a 21-year-old member of the Massachusetts Air National Guard, is charged of retaining and distributing classified and national defense information. He is being detained in Boston, noted the attorney’s office on Twitter.
According to the NY Times, Teixeira, who is accused of leaking hundreds of US classified documents on a gaming chat server, was charged on Friday as federal prosecutors disclosed more details about how sensitive government information may have been disseminated online.
He will remain in custody, and is scheduled to have a detention hearing on Wednesday, said the attorney’s office. The charges carry a maximum of 10 years behind bars.
Source: Kuwait News Agency