BOSTON, MA – Jack Douglas Teixeira, a 22-year-old former member of the United States Air National Guard, has been sentenced to 15 years in prison for unlawfully disclosing classified National Defense Information.
Teixeira, of North Dighton, MA, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Indira Talwani on March 2024 for retaining and transmitting hundreds of pages of classified National Defense Information (NDI), including many documents designated Top Secret, on an online social media platform in 2022 and 2023.
Teixeira pleaded guilty in March 2024 to six counts of willful retention and transmission of classified information relating to the national defense. He was arrested in April 2023 and charged by criminal complaint with retention and transmission of NDI and unauthorized removal and retention of classified documents or materials.
In June 2023, Teixeira was indicted by a federal grand jury in Boston. He has remained in federal custody since his arrest.
“Jack Teixeira repeatedly shared classified national defense information on a social media platform in an attempt to impress anonymous friends on the internet – instead, it has landed him a 15-year sentence in federal prison,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. “Teixeira’s profound breach of trust endangered our country’s national security and that of our allies. This sentence demonstrates the seriousness of the obligation to protect our country’s secrets and the safety of the American people.”
Teixeira was also barred from having contact with foreign agents as part of his sentence. The FBI and other federal agencies worked diligently to investigate and prosecute Teixeira for his crimes.
In related statements, Acting United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy, FBI Director Christopher Wray, and Jodi Cohen, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division, all emphasized the seriousness of the charges and the importance of protecting classified information.
The case against Teixeira serves as a stark warning to all those entrusted with protecting national defense information: betray that trust, and you will be held accountable. Teixeira’s sentence holds him accountable for being one of the most prolific leakers of classified national defense information in American history.
Defendant: Jack Douglas Teixeira
Criminal Charges: Six counts of willful retention and transmission of classified information relating to the national defense
City and State: Boston, Massachusetts
Date: March 2024 (sentencing), April 2023 (arrest)
Sentence: 15 years in prison, followed by three years of supervised release
Key Facts
- State: Massachusetts
- Category: Cybercrime
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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