Jack Teixeira, a 21-year-old member of the Massachusetts National Guard, prime suspect in a leak of classified Pentagon documents. made his first appearance in United States court after he was arrested.
Teixeira appeared on Friday in federal court in Boston, Massachusetts, a day after FBI agents nabbed him from his family home.
He was charged with the retention and transmission of national defence information and the willful retention of classified documents. The criminal offences could carry up to 15 years in prison.
The leaked classified documents were posted online in March and perhaps earlier but only got the spotlight last week.
US media has reported that the Discord group Teixeira led was formed in 2020 and focused heavily on gaming, guns and religion.
The wide-ranging documents contained US assessments of the war in Ukraine, painting a grim picture that the fighting would likely stretch beyond 2023 and that Kyiv’s air defence faced looming shortages.
The intelligence also appeared to show the extent of the US spying on some allies.
On Thursday, Department of Defense spokesperson Pat Ryder said his agency would not address specifics of the leaked documents as they had not been officially declassified.
Teixeira remains in custody until his detention trial on 19 April. US prosecutors have asked that he remain detained until his trial at a later date.
