Moments before his arrest by armed FBI agents on Thursday, a helicopter from a local news station caught footage of 21-year-old Jack Teixeira reading a book on the sun-splashed back porch of his house in North Dighton, Mass. In his front yard, meanwhile, FBI agents in camouflage tactical gear were climbing out of an armored vehicle, tightening the straps of their bullet-proof vests and gripping long guns. The dramatic scene playing out in a sleepy, riverside exurb underscored the peculiarity of a case that exposed military documents, complicated relations with U.S. allies, and triggered national embarrassment. Intelligence leaks of this magnitude in the past have been the result of an alienated whistle-blower, double agent or successful spy operation. Now arguably the most damaging disclosure of U.S. government documents in a decade may have stemmed from the hubris of a junior enlisted member in the Massachusetts Air National Guard who shared them in a small online chat group called Thug Shaker Central.

Available in: https://time.com/6271787/jack-teixeira-arrest-leaks/.