SThey called him “OG”. A young, charismatic man who loves nature, guns, racing cars and also God. He worked on a military base and started an exclusive chat group with two dozen other people – mostly men and boys – during the pandemic in 2020. The meeting point was the Discord platform, which is popular with “gamers”, i.e. video players. “OG” was the leader who wanted to train his squad to become first-class soldiers: fit, well-equipped – and well-informed. Therefore, he shared secret information with them.
“OG” is said to be the originator of the latest Pentagon data leak that is currently causing international diplomacy and the intelligence world to riot. This was first reported by the Washington Post. The source of the newspaper included two members of the group. Soon after the chat circle was formed, OG began sharing posts containing all sorts of military and intelligence jargon. He claimed through his work at the military base to have access to secrets that the government keeps from citizens.
He spends at least part of the day in a secure facility where cell phones and other electronic devices are prohibited. Initially, he wrote down the information by hand. In some places he commented on his posts for the chat group and added explanations, a member of the group told the Washington Post. “NOFORN” stands for: “No foreign nationals”, i.e. information which should not be shared with foreigners.
Secret Satellite Images
“OG” is a smart person, says the source, whose identity the newspaper won’t reveal. He wanted to keep his group up to date on the world situation and accepted the tedious task of copying it. The member of the group is not yet 18 years old himself and was a teenager when he met “OG”. The Washington Post notes that it obtained the consent of the minor’s mother for the interview. After a while, “OG” was apparently upset that his transcripts had received little attention in the chat group. Therefore he had started to photograph the documents.
That promised more attention: some of them showed tables and graphics about the situation on the battlefield in Ukraine, secret satellite images after a Russian missile attack and the like. The information concerned not only the war in Ukraine, but the whole world. He also shared a graphic showing the potential trajectory of a North Korean nuclear missile aimed at America. He also shared pictures of the Chinese spy balloon that entered American airspace earlier in the year – pictures that were allegedly taken by a U2 spy plane.
“OG” became careless over time: in the background of some of the photos that he showed the others via video, there were pieces of furniture and objects that could bring the investigators to his trail.
The chat group is like a family
Both of the newspaper’s sources declined to reveal the identity of “OGs.” Later Thursday, the New York Times, citing government officials, reported that the man was a 21-year-old Massachusetts State National Guard named Jack Teixeira. Then everything happened very quickly on Thursday: Justice Minister Merrick Garland announced that the man had been arrested. He was taken into custody without incident in North Dighton, Massachusetts in connection with the “unauthorized removal, storage and transmission of classified information.”
The underage member of the chat group said “OG” is like family to him. He had no specific goal in sharing the secret information with the group. He is not a whistleblower who wants to uncover abuses. He was critical of Washington, but only to the extent that right-wing circles are used to today. He is not anti-state, although he has some dark views and thinks the government is abusive. In video seen by the Washington Post, the man identified as “OG” stands at a shooting range with a rifle. While firing multiple shots at a target, he shouted racist and anti-Semitic insults.