Jack Teixeira, the Air National Guardsman accused of leaking classified military documents online, is expected to plead guilty next week, according to a court filing obtained Thursday.
The development marks a reverse of course for the 22-year-old, who pleaded not guilty in June to six counts of willful retention and transmission of national defense information. He faced up to 10 years in prison for each count.
Although the filing Thursday did not specify which charges Teixeira might plead guilty to, the Justice Department has formally asked for a change-of-plea hearing scheduled for March 4, meaning the Teixeira will likely plead guilty in the case.
A source close of the situation also told CNN he intends to change his plea.
Teixeira, of North Dighton, Mass., has remained behind bars since his arrest last April for what’s considered to be the most significant breach of intelligence in years.
He’s accused of releasing classified papers pertaining to Russia’s war in Ukraine, as well as other sensitive national security material on social media gaming site Discord.
Investigators said he was the leader of an exclusive chat group named Thug Shaker Central, where users shared jokes, debated their favorite types of guns and discussed current topics including Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
In January, Teixeira allegedly began sharing classified secrets with the Discord group, typing out sensitive documents and then sharing full photographs of the material.
Attorney General Merrick Garland said Teixeira had been trusted with material “that reasonably could be expected to cause exceptionally grave damage to national security if shared.”
Last May, a magistrate judge ruled that he must be kept behind bars as he waits for his case to play out, claiming there was a pertinent risk that he would attempt to flee in the event he was released, or potentially obstruct justice.
When he was indicted a month later on federal felony charges, prosecutors claimed Teixeira had a history of violent rhetoric, citing old social media posts in which he said he wished to kill “a ton of people.”
Months before his arrest, he had allegedly been caught by military colleagues taking notes on classified information and viewing intelligence material that was unrelated to his job.
