According to a court filing from prosecutors posted on Thursday, the Air National Guardsman who is accused of leaking classified documents is reportedly prepared to plead guilty to unspecified charges next week.
In June, 22-year-old Jack Teixeira entered a plea of not guilty to six federal charges. These charges include willful retention and transmission of national defense information.
The Justice Department has requested a change-of-plea hearing for Monday, indicating that Teixeira will plead guilty in the case. A judge has confirmed Monday for the hearing.
Teixeira’s potential guilty plea was not specified in the filing.
Teixeira, a former member of the Massachusetts Air National Guard, was arrested in April for allegedly leaking classified Defense Department documents on Discord, a popular chat app among gamers. The Air Force investigation concluded that he acted alone in the leak, but 15 other individuals faced disciplinary action in connection with the case.
The government claims that some of the documents he supposedly shared online contained highly classified information, such as “top secret,” “secret,” or “sensitive compartmented information.” These documents included details about Ukraine and Russia, as well as intelligence gathering activities related to South Korea and Israel, as previously reported by NBC News.
In May, he was detained before trial following prosecutors’ argument that he presented a significant risk of flight and could potentially escape the country with the assistance of a foreign adversary.
The Justice Department and the U.S. attorney’s office in Boston, where Teixeira is charged, chose not to comment on Thursday.
Federal public defenders who are listed as representing Teixeira did not respond to requests for comment on Thursday.
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