A leading advisor to United States Defence Secretary, Pete Hegseth, has been escorted from the Pentagon after being identified during an investigation into leaks at the Department of Defence.
Dan Caldwell was put on administrative leave for “an unauthorised disclosure”, a U.S. official told Reuters.
"The investigation remains ongoing," the official said without providing details about the nature of the alleged disclosure.
In a memo signed by Hegseth’s chief of staff, Joe Kasper, he requested an investigation into the “unauthorised disclosures of national security information”, even calling for assistance from the Director of Defence Intelligence.
Kasper even said polygraphs may be used in the investigation.
“I expect to be informed immediately if this effort results in information identifying a party responsible for an unauthorised disclosure, and that such information will be referred to the appropriate criminal law enforcement entity for criminal prosecution,” he said.
This comes after Hegseth named Caldwell as the best staff point contact for the National Security Council in the leaked Signal Chat published by the Atlantic last month.
Putting Caldwell on administrative leave is reportedly different to the Trump administration's mass federal firings.
Caldwell has previously worked with Hegseth at Concerned Veterans for America, a non-profit group with strong ties to Republican lawmakers and promoting conservative politics.
