John Bolton, Former US NSA And Trump Critic, May Face Federal Charges Soon: Report

John Bolton, the former National Security Adviser to US President Donald Trump and now his critic, is likely to face federal criminal charges soon. Citing officials aware of the matter, NBC News reported that an indictment could come as early as next week.

The US Attorney’s Office in Maryland — where Bolton resides — is expected to bring the charges, officials said. Refused to discuss matters related to a grand jury with the media, a spokesman for the Department of Justice said, the department “is united as one team in our mission to make America safe again.”

“And the Attorney General, Deputy Attorney General, along with the entire team at Main Justice continue to empower our US Attorneys to pursue justice in every case, ” the spokesman added,

the NBC News report mentioned.

FBI Raid, CIA Intel: Trump Ex-Aide’s Legal Trouble Deepens

In August, the FBI searched Bolton’s Maryland home and his Washington, D.C., office as part of a “national security investigation in search of classified records,” according to a source familiar with the matter. The search was reportedly prompted by intelligence from CIA Director John Ratcliffe to FBI chief Kash Patel.

Investigators were examining Bolton’s handling of classified materials and whether any of those documents had been leaked to the press. Affidavits released last month cited potential violations of the Espionage Act, including the unlawful possession or sharing of national defense information.

Meanwhile, Bolton’s lawyer has repeatedly claimed that the documents in question date back to his time in government under the George W. Bush administration and would be typical of those kept by a long-time government employee. Further, Bolton has maintained that his 2020 book, which angered Trump, contained no classified material, citing a National Security Council clearance letter.

Trump publicly called for Bolton’s prosecution in 2020, accusing him of releasing “massive amounts of classified” information after the then-former national security adviser wrote an unflattering book about his experience working for Trump.

“He released massive amounts of classified, and confidential, but classified information. That’s illegal and you go to jail for that,” Trump told Fox News in an interview then.

Since leaving the White House, Bolton has remained one of Trump’s harshest critics, particularly over foreign policy.

If indicted, Bolton would be the third prominent Trump critic charged since late September, following former FBI Director James Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James — both of whom have denied wrongdoing.