A federal grand jury has indicted U.S. Air National Guard member Jack Teshera for leaking classified military documents online, the U.S. Department of Justice announced.
As the Voice of America (VOA) reports today, the indictment against Tesera consists of six counts and includes the intentional retention and transmission of classified information related to national defense, according to the announcement.
The felony charge carries a sentence of up to 10 years in prison, three years of post-release supervision and a fine of up to $250.000.
Tešera was arrested on suspicion of having committed one of the most serious crimes in the field of security in the last 13 years, that is, since 2010, when more than 700.000 documents, videos and diplomatic cables appeared on WikiLeaks.
He was detained in April when it became clear that he had posted classified records on the Discord app. Shortly after his arrest, two commanders of his unit were suspended.
Tesera is in custody after prosecutors presented evidence that he had made violent and racist threats in the past, as well as that he had access to an arsenal of weapons. Also, as they pointed out, it represents a risk of sharing sensitive information with foreign countries.
The secret documents he leaked provided a wide range of highly classified information about allies and adversaries, with details ranging from Ukraine's air defenses to Israel's Mossad spy agency.
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