Jack Teixeira, Massachusetts Air National Guard member and alleged leaker of top secret military secrets, is facing a longer stay in prison as prosecutors asked that he remain in custody rather than be released to his father’s home. The 21-year-old airman and IT professional with Top Secret access to Pentagon information who released confidential information on his Discord gaming server may have access to more materials, they argue, and he may use them to barter with a foreign power in exchange for asylum. They also shared more details of Teixeira’s past and private life that raise questions about how he received his Top-Secret approval in the first place.

Teixeira received his access in 2021, after what should have been a thorough examination of his history. The investigation missed a number of troubling details that would give any rational judge of character pause. The Massachusetts native was suspended in 2018 after making racist threats, as well as threatening remarks about public shootings and making Molotov cocktails. The threat was serious enough that local police denied his requests in 2018 and 2019 for a firearm identification card (FID) that would allow him to purchase and own guns in the state. He was given the chance to reapply in 2020 after joining the Air National Guard and then amassed an arsenal that included handguns, rifles, shotguns, and a bazooka. He made multiple social media posts about conducting mass shootings, and how he wanted to create an “assassination van” and “cull the weak-minded.”

Despite these details and local PD denial of his FID application, the Guard granted Teixeira Top-Secret access. He searched hundreds of keywords and brought home original documents before he became nervous about being caught, and switched to taking photos. He shared the photos — and videos of him firing a rifle while shouting slurs — on his Discord server. He destroyed his electronic devices and asked his group to delete their messages before he deleted the chat server.

When viewed as a whole, the details paint a troubling picture of a young man whose fascination with weapons and violence led him to the Armed Forces where he was given Top-Secret access despite the warning signs in his recent history and who used that access to elevate himself in the eyes of the teenage and young adult gamers in his chat group. It’s a lot, and to anyone who has had a thorough background check or been interviewed as part of someone else’s review, it’s difficult to understand how the process failed so thoroughly when it came to Teixeira. Comments made by his group and high school classmates suggest Teixeira was a lonely guy desperate for his peers’ approval. CNN has details of the information shared, including details of our support of Ukraine in their defense against Russia. The documents were spread to several other Discord servers as well. Despite comments from MTG that Teixeira is “white, male, Christian, and antiwar,” it’s obvious how unsuited he was for his role.

It’s also a good example of how firearm regulations can keep guns out of the hands of potentially dangerous people as long as everyone is on the same page. Massachusetts has some of the strictest gun control laws in the country. Before receiving an FID card residents have to pass a firearm safety course, fill out an extensive application, pass a state and federal background check on both your photo ID and fingerprints, and pass a check with the state Dept. of Mental Health. Even if the applicant passes the necessary course and background checks, the local police chief can still deny the application based on their personal assessment of the applicant’s character. It’s not a perfect system. In some communities, the chief’s approval is a rubber stamp, particularly if they know the applicant or their family. In others, the chief’s bias might keep qualified women or people of color from getting their FID. But Teixeira’s case shows how it should work. And it did, until the federal government overruled local police and gave Teixeira access to firearms and state secrets.

Jack Teixeira’s not the only service member in the news whose background check failed to reveal troubling personal details. Noah Edwin Anthony just pleaded guilty to firearm charges that may lead to up to a decade in federal prison after Fort Bragg military police found a ghost gun in his car during a random search. The 3D-printed weapon led investigators to search Anthony’s quarters where they found white supremacist literature and Nazi paraphernalia. They also found plans to remove people of color from the area “by any means necessary.” It’s unclear if these were fantasy or actions Anthony genuinely intended to take, but it’s clear he doesn’t belong in the Armed Forces any more than Teixeira. Fort Bragg has been the site of dozens of soldiers’ deaths over the past several years. According to Rolling Stone, 83 active soldiers died in the 18 months before June 2021. More than 30 died under “undetermined” circumstances. Several soldiers have been murdered, including 20-year-old Vanessa Guillen, whose allegations of sexual harassment against Army Spc. Aaron David Robinson went ignored until he bludgeoned her to death; and Enrique Roman-Martinez, who was beheaded during a camping trip with fellow soldiers and whose body was never found.