Overview
- A Maryland grand jury returned an indictment charging John Bolton with eight counts of transmitting national defense information and ten counts of unlawful retention.
- The Justice Department alleges he routed classified material through personal email and messaging accounts.
- Charging documents describe two unauthorized recipients, which news outlets identified as his wife and daughter.
- FBI agents searched his home and Washington office on August 22, seizing electronics and documents later described as containing intelligence on planned operations, foreign adversaries, and U.S. strategic communications.
- Bolton surrendered in Greenbelt and entered a not-guilty plea, as his attorney argues the records were personal diary notes; each count carries up to 10 years in prison as the case proceeds toward pretrial steps.