A 21-year-old Massachusetts Air National Guard member has been named in multiple reports as the leader of an online chat group where a number of classified military documents were published about the ongoing war in Ukraine and U.S. intelligence operations around the world.
According to The New York Times, the national guardsman, whose name is Jack Teixeira, controlled an online Discord server called Thug Shaker Central that also included about 20 to 30 people, mostly young men, and teenagers. They would indulge in discussions about video games, guns, and often racist memes.
The Reuters news agency, citing government sources, said officials were planning to arrest Mr. Teixeira in connection with the investigation.
On Thursday, The New York Times said government officials confirmed that Airman Teixeira was being sought for questioning concerning the leaks, which have caused a diplomatic firestorm and spawned at least two ongoing investigations by the Justice Department and the Defense Department.
Members of the Thug Shaker Central chat group would identify the leaker only as “The O.G.” but The Times said they uncovered a trail of digital evidence that leads to Airman Teixeira, who is reportedly assigned to the 102nd Intelligence Wing of the Massachusetts Air National Guard.
If he turns out to be the leaker, it isn’t clear how such a junior member of the Air National Guard managed to get his hands on such a trove of classified information.
The Pentagon has scheduled a press conference for 2 p.m. Thursday where officials are expected to be questioned about the latest developments in the leak.
• Mike Glenn can be reached at mglenn@washingtontimes.com.
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