WATCH: FBI Arrests 21-Year-Old Suspect in Intel Leak

Jack Teixeira, a 21-year-old National Guardsman believed to have leaked a vast amount of classified US intelligence documents, was apprehended by the FBI at his home in Dighton, Massachusetts on Thursday.

Teixeira was seen in aerial footage surrendering to FBI agents who approached him with rifles from behind an armored vehicle. The Attorney General Merrick Garland stated that Teixeira was taken into custody “in connection with an investigation into alleged unauthorized removal, retention, and transmission of classified national defense information.”

Teixeira has been named as the source of the leak by several media outlets, including the Washington Post and New York Times, who allege that he shared the documents on the messaging app Discord with his friends. The leaked intelligence includes confidential reports on the Ukraine war and the US government’s spying activities on allies. It is currently unknown how Teixeira, a member of the Massachusetts Air National Guard, obtained access to the classified information.

President Joe Biden confirmed earlier on Thursday that law enforcement agencies were “getting close” to identifying the person who leaked the information, which has caused serious damage to the US’s relationships with allies, particularly South Korea. There has been outrage in South Korea over reports that the leaked documents revealed that the US spied on senior officials from the country.

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