Norfolk, Va. - A former sailor, assigned to the Norfolk-based aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman, is one of two men charged in a massive computer hacking case.
According to court documents, 27-year-old Nicholas Knight served as the self-proclaimed leader of a group that hacked into more than 30 organizations, including the U.S. Navy. Knight used to live in Virginia Beach
He and another man, Daniel Krueger, 20, were charged Monday for their role in the scheme.
According to court documents, they would steal information and post links to it on Twitter.
It was in June of 2012 when the Navy discovered one of their databases was breached, according to the U.S. Attorney's office.
The database contained personal information for more than 200,000 service members.
According to the court documents, the breach cost the Navy more than half a million dollars.
At the time of the hacking, Knight was assigned to the USS Harry S. Truman and, according to the documents, was discharged by the Navy after he was caught trying to hack into a Navy database at sea.
The documents also say Knight called himself a "black hat hacker" who fought for the people of the United States. Kreuger claimed to be involved "out of boredom."
According to the U.S. Attorney's office, the men have a hearing set in about two weeks in which they have asked to enter guilty pleas.
