Private First Class receives 15-year prison sentence.

On November 12, a court in Boston, Massachusetts, sentenced Jack Teixeira, a private in the U.S. Air National Guard, to 15 years in prison for distributing classified Pentagon documents online.

Private First Class Jack Teixeira of the U.S. Air National Guard in Massachusetts

Reuters reported on November 13 that Boston court judge Indira Talwani sentenced Jack Teixeira, 23, to 15 years in prison for serious offenses after he was found guilty of leaking classified documents about US strategy in Ukraine, as well as US military equipment supplied to a foreign force.

Despite being only a private in the U.S. Air National Guard in Massachusetts, defendant Teixeira was granted access to top-secret information. Starting in January 2022, he accessed hundreds of classified documents related to the situation in Ukraine.

Private Teixeira also "boasted" about having access to information on "Israel, Palestine, Syria, Iran, and China," according to the indictment.

An overview of the Pentagon Papers leak that has shaken the US, its allies, and its adversaries.

The dissemination of the content began in October 2022 on Discord, a popular chat platform for gamers. By April 2023, Private Teixeira was arrested pending trial.

In March of this year, the defendant pleaded guilty to intentionally possessing and disseminating national defense information, violating the U.S. Espionage Act. At the time, prosecutors called Private Teixeira's actions "one of the most serious and consequential violations" related to the act.

"I apologize for all the consequences I have caused because of my actions," defendant Teixeira expressed remorse before Judge Talwani during the trial on November 12.

Judge Talwani stated that despite receiving thorough training on handling classified documents and being warned of the penalties for disclosure, defendant Teixeira "still uploaded hundreds of documents to the internet, on Discord, over the course of a year."

In addition to the criminal trial, Teixeira also faces a military trial.

Last December, the U.S. Air Force announced disciplinary action against 15 individuals in connection with the Teixeira incident and relieved Colonel Sean Riley of his command of Private Teixeira's unit.

This decision was made after an inspection revealed that some members of the unit, and even commanding officers, were aware of the private's suspicious behavior but failed to take timely action.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/vu-ro-ri-tai-lieu-mat-chan-dong-lau-nam-goc-binh-nhat-lanh-an-15-nam-tu-185241113065259796.htm