In a significant development, John Bolton, the former national security adviser to President Donald Trump and a vocal critic of the former president, is expected to be charged with federal crimes in the near future. According to two federal officials familiar with the ongoing investigation, Bolton could potentially be indicted as early as next week. The charges are likely to be filed by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Maryland, where Bolton resides. This information was first reported by MSNBC.
Bolton’s attorney, Abbe Lowell, has not yet responded to requests for comments regarding the impending charges. Meanwhile, a spokesperson for the Department of Justice has refrained from discussing grand jury matters, stating, “As a matter of law, we will not discuss any grand jury matters with the media.” The spokesperson emphasized that the Justice Department remains committed to its mission of ensuring national safety and justice.
In August, the FBI executed searches at Bolton’s Maryland home and his office in Washington, D.C. These actions were part of a national security investigation focused on classified records. A source informed NBC News that the searches were prompted by intelligence provided by CIA Director John Ratcliffe to FBI Director Kash Patel, which served as the basis for the search warrant.
These investigations have centered on Bolton’s management of classified materials. Allegations suggest potential leaks of classified documents to the media, marking this as a serious criminal investigation that began during the Biden administration. The released search warrant affidavits reference possible violations of the Espionage Act, including unauthorized possession of classified materials and sharing national defense information without proper authorization.
The political backdrop of these events is significant. In June 2020, Trump publicly called for Bolton to be prosecuted following the release of Bolton's critical book about his time in the White House. Trump claimed Bolton had “released massive amounts of classified, and confidential, but classified information,” asserting that such actions are illegal and warrant imprisonment.
In response, Bolton has maintained that he adhered to legal guidelines and even received a letter from a National Security Council official in 2020, asserting that his book contained no classified material. Interestingly, in 2023, Trump himself was indicted on charges related to the mishandling of top-secret documents, although a federal judge dismissed these charges in 2024.
Despite the legal troubles he faces, Bolton has remained a critical voice against Trump, especially concerning foreign policy issues related to Russia. In recent years, he has not shied away from voicing his discontent with Trump’s administration. In turn, Trump has continued to disparage Bolton, labeling him as a “lowlife” and “dumb.” Notably, shortly after Trump’s second term began, he terminated Bolton's Secret Service detail, even though Bolton had been a target of a murder-for-hire scheme linked to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
Bolton is not the only Trump critic facing legal challenges. Since late September, he would become the third prominent critic to encounter criminal charges. Former FBI Director James Comey was indicted on charges of making false statements to Congress and obstruction. Additionally, New York Attorney General Letitia James was indicted on a bank fraud charge recently. These indictments followed a post by Trump on Truth Social, where he urged action against Comey, James, and Senator Adam Schiff, declaring, “They’re all guilty as hell, but nothing is going to be done.”
As the investigations unfold, Bolton's case remains a focal point in the ongoing dialogue surrounding national security, legal accountability, and the political landscape shaped by Trump's presidency.
