John Bolton Faces Criminal Indictment Amid Controversial Investigation

Sat Oct 18 2025 06:28:27 GMT+0300 (Eastern European Summer Time)

Former national security adviser John Bolton has been indicted on federal charges related to the mishandling of classified information. This marks a significant development as Bolton becomes one of several political figures facing legal challenges connected to Donald Trump.

John Bolton, the former national security advisor, has been criminally indicted on multiple federal charges after a grand jury found sufficient evidence against him. This indictment follows an FBI investigation into the handling of classified information and adds to the growing list of political adversaries facing charges in recent weeks.

John Bolton, who served as Donald Trump's national security adviser before becoming a vocal critic of the president, has been criminally indicted on federal charges. The Department of Justice presented a case to a grand jury in Maryland on Thursday, and they agreed there was enough evidence to indict Bolton, who issued a statement maintaining his innocence.

It comes after FBI agents searched Bolton's home and office in August as part of an investigation into the handling of classified information. The indictment makes Bolton, 76, the third of the US president's political opponents to face charges in recent weeks, and he could face decades in prison.

According to a 26-page indictment filed at a court in Greenbelt, Maryland, on Thursday, Bolton is charged with eight counts of transmission of national defense information (NDI) and 10 counts of unlawful retention of NDI. Prosecutors accuse him of illegally transmitting top secret information about US national defense using his personal email and other messaging apps. These documents revealed intelligence about future attacks, foreign adversaries, and foreign-policy relations, the court papers state.

If found guilty, Bolton could face up to 10 years in prison for each charge. He is expected to surrender to authorities on Friday. No one is above the law, US Attorney General Pam Bondi said in a statement announcing the charges. Bolton looked forward to defending his lawful conduct in court, alleging Trump is seeking retribution against him.

Bolton's lawyer, Abbe Lowell, stated that the charges stem from diary entries kept by Bolton over his 45-year career in public service, arguing that keeping diaries is not a crime. The records were described as unclassified, shared only with his immediate family, and known to the FBI as far back as 2021. According to reports, Bolton allegedly shared the unauthorized information with his wife and daughter.

Bolton, who was fired from Trump's administration in 2019, was critical of the president in his memoir, The Room Where It Happened. His book faced legal challenges from the White House, but was ultimately published.

Notably, his indictment follows other recent charges against political figures criticized by Trump, including New York Attorney General Letitia James and former FBI Director James Comey. Trump claimed that these cases are part of a broader agenda to prosecute his political opponents.