Particle.news
Download on the App Store

Court Filings Show FBI Seized ‘Classified’ and ‘Secret’ Records at John Bolton’s D.C. Office

A Justice Department grand jury inquiry, supported by intelligence about a foreign hack of Bolton’s email, is weighing potential Espionage Act charges.

Overview

  • Newly unsealed inventories say agents collected documents labeled classified, secret, and confidential during the August 22 search of Bolton’s Washington office.
  • Seized records referenced weapons of mass destruction, the U.S. Mission to the United Nations, a U.S. government strategic communications plan, and travel memos with pages marked secret.
  • The same morning, agents searched Bolton’s Bethesda home and took electronic devices and files, though the inventory listed no overtly classified documents there.
  • Court filings state investigators are reviewing potential violations of 18 U.S.C. § 793 and § 1924 under a warrant approved by U.S. Magistrate Judge Moxila Upadhyaya.
  • Bolton’s attorney says many items date from 1998–2006 and were previously vetted during a pre‑publication review for his 2020 book, while significant portions of the affidavit remain redacted and no charges have been filed.