HUNTINGTON, W.Va. — A Department of Veterans Affairs employee has pleaded guilty to leaking the medical records of Richard Ojeda as the former Army major was running for Congress.

Federal prosecutors announced Tuesday that Jeffrey Miller has acknowledged accessing the medical records of six veterans when he was working for the VA's benefits administration.

Authorities say the 39-year-old Miller took a picture of Ojeda’s records then sent the image to an unnamed acquaintance. Ojeda was elected to the West Virginia Senate in 2016 and stepped down to run for U.S. president in 2020. He dropped out of the race in January.

Retired paratrooper, a former West Virginia lawmaker, exits from 2020 presidential race While other Democrats around the country are preparing for presidential runs, a retired Army paratrooper and former West Virginia lawmaker became the first to call off his White House bid after about two months as a candidate Friday.

Ojeda says the records were distributed among high-ranking Republicans to derail his campaign for West Virginia's 3rd Congressional District in 2018. He sued the VA for documents related to the agency's investigation of Miller.

Ojeda lost to current Rep. Carol Miller. Her spokeswoman says the congresswoman isn’t related to Jeffrey Miller and that she has never seen the medical records.