Discord admin gets 15 years for “one of the most significant leaks” in US history

Former US Air National Guard Jack Teixeira was sentenced to 15 years in prison for leaking confidential military documents on Discord. Teixeira was arrested last year for sharing hundreds of pages of information online, some of which detailed national security secrets tied to US foreign adversaries and allies, including Russia, China, Ukraine, and South Korea. He secured the documents through his position at a Massachusetts military base, hoping to impress his young military-obsessed friends in a Discord group called "Thug Shaker Central." Back in March, Teixeira pled guilty to six counts of “willful retention and transmission of national defense information." But in taking a plea deal, he got the government's bigger spy charges tossed, avoiding a much longer possible maximum sentence of 60 years. Acting US Attorney for the District of Massachusetts, Joshua S. Levy, said Teixeira was "responsible for engaging in one of the most significant leaks of classified documents and information in United States history, which resulted in exceptionally grave and long-lasting damage to the national security of the United States." "He exploited his Top-Secret security clearance to share critical defense information online," Levy said. "In doing so, he exposed sensitive defense information involving our allies, putting our intelligence community and our troops at risk. It is vital that our classified information remains just that—classified. Leaking and distributing this kind of information poses significant and real consequences across the globe. This is disturbing conduct that will not go unnoticed and unchecked." Teixeira's lawyer has said that the former airman is "significantly remorseful" when unsuccessfully asking for the lightest possible sentence of 11 years. On Tuesday, the US Department of Justice confirmed that Teixeira would serve 15 years, which is less than the plea deal's recommended maximum sentence of 16 years and eight months. The DOJ noted that Teixeira has remained in federal custody since his arrest in April 2023. After his prison sentence, he must serve three years of supervised release. He has also been "barred from having contact with foreign agents." FBI Director Christopher Wray said that his sentence should serve as "a stark warning to all those entrusted with protecting national defense information: betray that trust, and you will be held accountable."

FBI vows to watch for more leaks

After Teixeira's crimes were exposed, the now-22-year-old's former classmates came out, suggesting that Teixeira had always had an "unnerving" fixation with guns and the military. They claimed he would do "crazy stuff" to get attention in school, and that impulse seemingly spilled over into Discord, where he found a community hungry for military insights that could potentially fuel conspiracy theories. The DOJ noted that Teixeira was twice warned to stop doing "deep dives" of confidential information at his base, but that didn't stop him from taking top-secret documents home. Sometimes, he would even retype the documents into Discord to try to cover his tracks, but other times, he uploaded the documents themselves, many of which were clearly marked "top-secret." Although Teixeira asked Discord members not to share the documents, an investigative journalism group, Bellingcat, found that Teixeira's friends spread the documents widely, first to other Discord servers, then to Telegram, 4Chan, and Twitter (now called X). When he ultimately lost control over the documents spreading, Teixeira "took steps to conceal his disclosures by destroying and disposing of his electronic devices, deleting his online accounts, and encouraging his online acquaintances to do the same," the DOJ said. The DOJ is hoping that Teixeira's 15-year sentence will deter future leaks after the incident raised questions about who gets access to the US government's most sensitive documents. Teixeira had access to the Pentagon's confidential documents—including top-secret information on troop movements on particular dates—since he became a low-level computer tech at his base at 19 years old, the FBI found. Business Insider estimated that more than 2 million workers have similar clearance. Attorney General Merrick B. Garland said Teixeira's sentence "demonstrates the seriousness of the obligation to protect our country’s secrets and the safety of the American people," while Wray promised that the FBI would keep monitoring for leaks. "Jack Teixeira’s criminal conduct placed our nation, our troops, and our allies at great risk," Wray said. "The FBI will continue to work diligently with our partners to protect classified information and ensure that those who turn their backs on their country face justice."