A Democratic congressional staffer was arrested Wednesday and accused of posting the personal information of at least one Republican senator during last week's hearing about sexual assault claims against Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh, authorities said.
U.S. Capitol Police said 27-year-old Jackson Cosko was charged with making public restricted personal information, witness tampering, threats in interstate communication, unauthorized access of a government computer, identity theft, second-degree burglary and unlawful entry. Police added that the investigation was continuing and more charges could be filed.
Senior congressional sources state that Cosko most recently worked as a staffer for Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, D-Texas. He also had worked with Sen. Maggie Hassan, D-N.H., and former Democratic Sen. Barbara Boxer of California. A LinkedIn page with Cosko's name on it describes him as a "Democratic Political Professional & Cybersecurity Graduate Student."
The intentional publication of the information was first caught by a Twitter bot that automatically tracks any changes made to Wikipedia entries from anyone located in the U.S. Congress and publicizes them on the social media site. The bot account later deleted the tweets because the edits contained personal information. According to the bot, whoever posted the information did so from a computer in the House of Representatives.
U.S. Capitol Police said 27-year-old Jackson Cosko was charged with making public restricted personal information, witness tampering, threats in interstate communication, unauthorized access of a government computer, identity theft, second-degree burglary and unlawful entry. Police added that the investigation was continuing and more charges could be filed.
Senior congressional sources state that Cosko most recently worked as a staffer for Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, D-Texas. He also had worked with Sen. Maggie Hassan, D-N.H., and former Democratic Sen. Barbara Boxer of California. A LinkedIn page with Cosko's name on it describes him as a "Democratic Political Professional & Cybersecurity Graduate Student."
The intentional publication of the information was first caught by a Twitter bot that automatically tracks any changes made to Wikipedia entries from anyone located in the U.S. Congress and publicizes them on the social media site. The bot account later deleted the tweets because the edits contained personal information. According to the bot, whoever posted the information did so from a computer in the House of Representatives.
ooooh! that's cold.