John Bolton indicted for mishandling classified government materials

John R. Bolton was indicted Thursday by a federal grand jury in Maryland on charges that he unlawfully retained classified information.

Mr. Bolton, a former national security adviser to President Trump, joins two other Trump political opponents who have been indicted. The others are former FBI Director James B. Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James.

“I think he’s a bad person,” Mr. Trump said in the Oval Office on Thursday. “He’s a bad guy.”

Mr. Bolton served in the White House’s inner national security circle during Mr. Trump’s first term. Mr. Trump later soured on Mr. Bolton, saying he was war-hungry, and Mr. Bolton frequently criticized the president on the airwaves.

“The FBI’s investigation revealed that John Bolton allegedly transmitted top secret information using personal online accounts and retained said documents in his house in direct violation of federal law,” FBI Director Kash Patel said in a statement.

“The case was based on meticulous work from dedicated career professionals at the FBI who followed the facts without fear or favor. Weaponization of justice will not be tolerated, and this FBI will stop at nothing to bring to justice anyone who threatens our national security.”

The 18-count indictment accuses Mr. Bolton of illegally transmitting national defense information, or NDI, and illegally retaining NDI documents in his home. It charges him with eight counts of transmission of NDI and 10 counts of unlawful retention of NDI.

If convicted, he faces up to 180 years in prison, a maximum of 10 years for each count, but he likely won’t get the maximum sentence if found guilty.

“The underlying facts in this case were investigated and resolved years ago,” said Mr. Bolton’s attorney, Abbe Lowell. “These charges stem from portions of Ambassador Bolton’s personal diaries over his 45-year career — records that are unclassified, shared only with his immediate family, and known to the FBI as far back as 2021.

“Like many public officials throughout history, Ambassador Bolton kept diaries — that is not a crime,” he said. “We look forward to proving once again that Ambassador Bolton did not unlawfully share or store any information.”

FBI agents raided Mr. Bolton’s office and his home in Bethesda, Maryland, in August as part of the investigation.

Earlier court filings recounted how Mr. Bolton raised suspicions when he submitted a tell-all book to the government for a national security review in 2019.

The book contained a level of detail related to secret information, so government officials wanted to know whether Mr. Bolton retained notes or other material in violation of the law.

During Mr. Trump’s first term, the Justice Department sued Mr. Bolton and launched a criminal investigation into whether he unlawfully disclosed classified information in the book, which was a scathing critique of the administration.

The Justice Department under President Biden dropped the lawsuit and grand jury investigation in 2021. Mr. Bolton has long professed his innocence and claimed the investigation was an example of Mr. Trump’s use of the Justice Department to attack his perceived enemies.

Since returning to the White House, Mr. Trump has targeted his most vocal critics, including Democrats and law firms that sued his first administration and were involved in lawsuits and investigations, especially with what he calls the Russia hoax, against him and his allies.

Earlier this year, Mr. Trump revoked Mr. Bolton’s Secret Service protection.

Attorney General Pam Bondi said the indictment proved there is “one tier of justice for all Americans.”

“Anyone who abuses a position of power and jeopardizes our national security will be held accountable. No one is above the law,” she said.

The case against Mr. Bolton will inevitably raise comparisons to other high-profile cases.

Mr. Trump was the subject of an investigation into classified documents taken from the White House and stored at his Florida estate in Mar-a-Lago, though the case was dismissed after Mr. Trump won a second term.

Mr. Biden was also the subject of an investigation into classified records at his Delaware property but was not charged.