A former Democratic aide arrested on charges of allegedly posting GOP senators’ private information online made his first court appearance on Thursday afternoon.
Jackson Cosko, 27, appeared in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia a day after being arrested for “doxxing” GOP senators on Wikipedia.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia announced that Jackson has been charged with five federal offenses, including making public restricted personal information; making threats in interstate commerce; unauthorized access of a government computer; identity theft; and witness tampering.
{mosads}He is also charged with two D.C. offenses: Second-degree burglary, which carries up to 15 years in prison, and unlawful entry, which carries up to 6 months in prison.
Magistrate Judge Deborah Robinson ordered that Cosko be held in detention pending a hearing set for Oct. 9.
Capitol Police began an investigation Sept. 27 when the Wikipedia pages of three unidentified senators were edited to include restricted personal information without their permission, according to the affidavit released by prosecutors. On Oct. 1, two more senator’s pages were similarly edited, prosecutors said.
Cosko was linked to the case when on Oct. 2 a witness saw him allegedly on the computer in the office of a senator who once employed him, leading to an investigation by Capitol Police, according to prosecutors.
Cosko has been identified as a former intern for Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-Texas). In the past he also reportedly worked for Sen. Maggie Hassan (D-N.H.) and former Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.).