Donald Trump’s former national security adviser John Bolton indicted by justice department

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The US Justice Department has charged John Bolton, Donald Trump’s former national security adviser, in the latest legal strike against a critic of the president.

The charges brought by the US Attorney General’s Office in Maryland on Thursday relate to Bolton’s alleged mishandling of classified documents.

“I think he’s a bad person,” the president told reporters Thursday, referring to the indictment. “It’s too bad, but that’s the way it goes.”

“There is one level of justice for all Americans,” US Attorney Pam Bondi said in a statement. “Anyone who abuses his position and puts our national security at risk will be held accountable. No one is above the law.”

A representative for Bolton did not immediately comment.

The indictment against Bolton, a Republican who also served as former President George W. Bush’s ambassador to the United Nations, is the latest against one of Trump’s political opponents. Critics of the Trump administration say the Justice Department is bending to the president’s wishes, accusations the department has rejected.

The Justice Department also recently indicted former FBI Director James Comey, who oversaw an investigation into Trump’s alleged ties to Russia, and Letitia James, the New York prosecutor who brought the case against the president. Comey has pleaded not guilty and James described the accusations as “baseless.”

Federal prosecutors alleged that Bolton illegally shared information — some of which was classified as top secret — about foreign adversaries, future attacks and foreign policy matters via his personal email and messaging accounts.

According to the indictment, between 2018 and 2025 Bolton allegedly shared more than 1,000 pages of information about his role as national security adviser with two unnamed relatives, whom he at one point referred to as his “editors.”

Bolton’s notes included descriptions such as “While I was in the situation room, I learned that…” or “The intelligence provider said…”.

Court documents say several “diary-like entries” were printed and kept at Bolton’s personal residence in Maryland. It included intelligence information about the leaders of a rival country, as well as information revealing sources.

After he left government in 2019, prosecutors believe an Iran-linked “cyber actor” hacked Bolton’s personal email and accessed classified information, they said. A representative for Bolton notified the government, but did not disclose that the email account contained such sensitive material, according to the indictment.

Bolton faces eight counts of transmitting national defense information and 10 counts of illegally retaining such materials. Each is punishable by a maximum of 10 years in prison, although sentences for federal crimes are often below the maximum levels.

In August, the FBI raided Bolton’s home in Bethesda, Maryland, on the outskirts of Washington.

Trump and Bolton fell out shortly after he left his position as national security adviser in September 2019, during Trump’s first term.

Bolton described Trump as “unfit” to hold office in his book The room where it happenedWhile the President described Bolton as “low-life” and “not a smart man.” The president also criticized Bolton’s criticism of his approach to brokering a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine.