Ex-Trump national security adviser John Bolton indicted on charges of mishandling classified information

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Ex-Trump national security adviser John Bolton indicted on charges of mishandling classified information






By Caitlin Doornbos
Oct. 16, 2025

A federal grand jury indicted former Trump national security adviser John Bolton Thursday on 18 counts of illegally hoarding or sending sensitive national security information — leaving the longtime pillar of the Republican foreign policy establishment facing decades in prison.

The indictment in Greenbelt, Md. federal court alleges that Bolton sent sensitive national security documents through a personal AOL email account and knowingly transmitted materials to outside contacts while serving in the first Trump administration.

Bolton, 76, served as President Trump’s national security adviser from April 2018 until his firing in September 2019. Upon leaving office, he pledged he did not have any classified documents or notes in his possession.

However, those communications — some of which stayed on his AOL account — were exposed to bad actors when a foreign entity hacked Bolton’s email, according to a probable cause warrant unsealed last month.

Bolton faces up to 10 years in prison on each count of the indictment.





Federal agents searched Bolton’s Maryland home and Washington, DC office on Aug. 22 in connection with the long-running investigation, which FBI sources told The Post was mysteriously “shelved” during the administration of President Trump’s predecessor, Joe Biden.

During those searches, FBI investigators retrieved documents related to weapons of mass destruction, the US mission to the United Nations, strategic government communications and secret travel memos, according to court records.

Even if Bolton had no intention of releasing the information, he could be held liable if sensitive documents were left lying around where others could get to it — a legal provision that applies to his personal email account as well.

Investigators were told to look for software or viruses that would allow an outsider access to Bolton’s electronics — as well as whether the former US ambassador to the United Nations had installed security software to detect malware, according to a search warrant.

It’s unclear whether any such programs were found.


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Source: New York Post
Link:https://nypost.com/2025/10/16/us-new...d-information/




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