Former National Security Adviser John Bolton has been indicted by a federal grand jury in Maryland, according to two sources familiar with the case.
Bolton, 76, is reportedly preparing to surrender himself as early as Friday to federal authorities at the U.S. District Court in Greenbelt, Maryland. The charges stem from an ongoing investigation into the alleged mishandling of classified information, marking yet another high-profile legal case involving one of Trump’s most prominent adversaries.
His indictment makes him the third major politician to face federal charges in less than a month, adding a new layer of political and legal tension in Washington.
According to sources, the investigation focuses on Bolton’s alleged sharing of highly classified information with his wife and daughter through email — a potential violation of federal secrecy laws governing national security documents.
Investigators also believe that Bolton may have stored sensitive national defense material improperly on his personal email account, specifically an old AOL account he used while serving in the Trump administration.
Justice Department officials reportedly became aware of the emails after discovering that Bolton had been using his personal account as a kind of digital diary, documenting his activities, private reflections, and classified briefings while serving as Trump’s national security adviser between 2018 and 2019.
Some of those messages, according to investigators, contained details about intelligence operations, foreign policy discussions, and weapons programs.
The FBI’s counterintelligence division executed search warrants on Bolton’s Maryland residence and his Washington, D.C., office earlier this summer.
Court records reveal that agents seized multiple boxes of documents marked “Secret,” “Confidential,” and “Classified.” Among them were papers that reportedly referenced weapons of mass destruction and sensitive intelligence collection methods — some of the most tightly controlled categories of classified information.
Sources close to the case say prosecutors are weighing several felony counts under the Espionage Act, which governs the unlawful retention or transmission of national defense information. If convicted, Bolton could face severe criminal penalties, including up to 10 years in prison for each count.
The Justice Department has not yet released the full indictment, and Bolton’s legal team has declined to comment. However, one attorney familiar with his defense strategy told reporters that Bolton maintains his innocence and plans to fight the charges “vigorously,” insisting that he “never intentionally mishandled or shared classified materials.”
Bolton’s defenders argue that the case may be politically motivated, given his long history of public criticism toward President Trump. Since leaving the White House in 2019, Bolton has become a frequent commentator on national security and foreign policy — and a harsh critic of Trump’s leadership.
His 2020 memoir, The Room Where It Happened, infuriated the administration by describing internal conflicts and controversial decision-making in vivid detail. The Justice Department at the time unsuccessfully attempted to block its publication, arguing it contained classified material — a dispute that may now resurface as evidence in the new criminal case.
Bolton’s indictment follows a series of prosecutions targeting individuals who have clashed with the Trump administration, including former CIA officer Philip Mudd and ex-FBI attorney Lisa Page, both charged in recent weeks with unrelated offenses.
Together, the cases have reignited debate over whether the Justice Department’s renewed focus on former officials is legally warranted or politically charged.
