US National Guard soldier Jack Teixeira, accused of leaking classified military documents, has pleaded not guilty.
This is reported by CNN.
Teixeira was previously charged with multiple counts of knowingly retaining and transmitting classified information related to national defense.
He has been in federal custody since his arrest in April.
The serviceman's lawyers argued in court that their client did not expect that the classified information he posted on Discord would spread on the Internet. They also criticized prosecutors for exaggerating Teixeira's dangerousness.
According to the channel, when Teixeira entered the courtroom, he smiled and waved to his family. He later pleaded not guilty to each count during a brief hearing.
The next hearing in Teixeira's case is scheduled for August 9.
It will be recalled that Jack Teixeira was arrested by the Federal Bureau of Investigation on April 13 at his home in Massachusetts.
Prosecutors say the 21-year-old passed classified documents, including one on troop movements in Russia's war against Ukraine, to a group of gamers on the Discord messaging app.
Teixeira is charged with the unauthorized retention and transfer of national defense information, as well as the unauthorized removal of classified information and defense materials, for which he could face up to 15 years in prison.
The leaked documents contained top-secret US information about allies and adversaries. US President Joe Biden ordered an investigation to find out the circumstances of the incident.
In court documents, prosecutors also said Teixeira's superiors reprimanded him twice in September and October 2022 over his handling of classified information. But this did not lead to the restriction of access to it.
