Ex-Trump Adviser John Bolton Surrenders Following Charges Of Mishandling Classified Information

Last Updated:October 17, 2025, 22:29 IST

John Bolton, former Trump Security Advisor, pleaded not guilty to 18 Espionage Act charges for mishandling classified information, claiming political retaliation.

Former US NSA John Bolton. (Image: Reuters/File)

John Bolton, US President Donald Trump’s former Security Advisor, who later became one of his biggest critics, surrendered on Friday on charges of mishandling classified information.

Bolton, who was indicted on Thursday, is the third of Trump’s prominent critics to face prosecution in recent weeks, as the US President dispenses with decades-long norms designed to insulate federal law enforcement from political pressures.

Wearing a dark blue suit and a maroon tie, the former NSA did not respond to reporters as he entered the courthouse to surrender to authorities. He is expected to make an initial appearance before a judge and may have to stop at the US Marshals office for “possible" fingerprinting and booking photo, news agency Reuters reported.

Bolton is charged with 18 counts of retaining and sharing classified information related to national defense in the years following his firing from the Trump administration in 2019 and up through this year.

“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.

The indictment claimed that Bolton shared sensitive material with two relatives for potential use in a book he was writing, including details from intelligence briefings and meetings with senior officials and foreign leaders.

As per the indictment, Bolton shared “more than a thousand pages" of “diary-like entries" during his time as Trump’s national security adviser, “that contained information classified up to the TOP SECRET" level.

“On other occasions, Bolton used his personal non-governmental email accounts, such as email accounts hosted by AOL and Google, to email information classified" to the individual’s personal email accounts, it further stated.

Bolton Pleads Not Guilty

However, Bolton dismissed the charges as an attempt to punish dissent.

“Now, I have become the latest target in weaponising the Justice Department to charge those he deems to be his enemies with charges that were declined before or distort the facts," he said.

He stressed that his book had been cleared through proper channels.

“My book was reviewed and approved by the appropriate, experienced career clearance officials. When my email was hacked in 2021, the FBI was made fully aware. In four years of the prior administration, after these reviews, no charges were ever filed."

Charges Against Bolton

Bolton served as White House national security adviser during Trump’s first term, before emerging as one of the President’s most vocal critics. Bolton, also a former US ambassador to the United Nations, described Trump as unfit to be President in a memoir he released last year.

The investigation of Bolton was opened in 2022, predating the Trump administration. Inside the Justice Department, the case is viewed as stronger than the prosecutions of Comey and James, according to a person familiar with the matter.

The indictment of Bolton, filed in federal court in Maryland, charges him with eight counts of transmission of national defense information and 10 counts of retention of national defense information, all in violation of the Espionage Act.

Each count is punishable by up to 10 years in prison, but any sentence would be determined by a judge based on a range of factors.

(With inputs from agencies)

News world Ex-Trump Adviser John Bolton Surrenders Following Charges Of Mishandling Classified Information

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