Pentagon leaker suspect Jack Teixeira pleads not guilty to federal charges

Former Massachusetts Air National Guard member accused of leaking highly classified military documents

Massachusetts Air National Guardsman Jack Teixeira appears in US District Court in Boston, Massachusetts, in this courtroom sketch. AP

Jack Teixeira, the Massachusetts Air National Guard member accused of leaking highly classified military documents on a social media platform, pleaded not guilty on Wednesday to federal felony charges.

Mr Teixeira, 21, entered the pleas during a hearing in a federal court days after he was indicted by a grand jury on six counts of wilful retention and transmission of national defence information.

Each count is punishable by up to 10 years in prison.

Handcuffed and wearing orange jail garb, Mr Teixeira smiled at family seated in the gallery at the start of the hearing.

He stood at the defence table next to his lawyers and leaned over to say “not guilty, your honour” into the microphone after the judge read each count.

The judge also denied a defence request to reconsider his detention order.

Mr Teixeira, of North Dighton, has been behind bars since his April arrest on charges stemming from the most consequential intelligence leak in years.

A magistrate judge ruled last month that Mr Teixeira must remain in jail while the case plays out, saying that releasing him would pose a risk that he would attempt to flee the country or obstruct justice.

The leak left President Joe Biden's administration scrambling to assess and contain the damage in the international community and reassure allies that its secrets are safe with the US.

Mr Teixeira’s lawyer has said his client “will answer the charges” and “will be judged by his fellow citizens”.

In pushing for his release, his lawyers argued that the government is not alleging Mr Teixeira ever intended that the information be widely disseminated.

His family said in an emailed statement last month that they “remain committed as ever” to supporting him.

Mr Teixeira is accused of sharing classified military documents about Russia’s war in Ukraine and other sensitive national security topics on Discord, a social media platform popular with people playing online games.

Investigators believe he was the leader of an private chat group called Thug Shaker Central, where enthusiasts shared jokes, talked about their favourite types of guns and discussed wars, including Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Authorities say Mr Teixeira, who enlisted in the Air National Guard in 2019, began around January sharing military secrets with other Discord users – first by typing out classified documents and then sharing photographs of files that bore “Secret” and “Top Secret” markings.

Mr Teixeira worked as a “cyber transport systems specialist”, essentially an IT specialist responsible for military communications networks.

Officials have provided few details about an alleged possible motive, but accounts of those in the online private chat group where the documents were disclosed have depicted Mr Teixeira as motivated more by bravado than ideology.

Attorney General Merrick Garland said in a statement last week that Mr Teixeira was entrusted with information “that reasonably could be expected to cause exceptionally grave damage to national security if shared”.