LAKEWOOD, NJ – Former U.S. National Security Adviser John R. Bolton, 77, pleaded guilty Friday in federal court to willfully retaining national defense information, resolving an 18-count indictment stemming from his handling of classified documents after serving in the White House.
According to the U.S. Department of Justice, Bolton admitted he used personal email accounts and messaging platforms to send classified information to family members who were not authorized to receive it. Prosecutors said one of those personal email accounts was later hacked by a cyber actor believed to be linked to the Islamic Republic of Iran.
Bolton visited New Jersey in January 2020 to discuss allegations of anti-Semitism in Jackson and Lakewood with Orthodox Jewish community leaders.
Prosecutors say classified material was exposed
Bolton served as National Security Adviser from April 2018 through September 2019. Court documents state that during his tenure he incorporated highly classified information into personal “diary” entries containing material classified up to the Top Secret and Sensitive Compartmented Information (SCI) levels.
Prosecutors said the documents included information about foreign adversaries’ military plans, covert U.S. government operations, and intelligence gathered through human sources and intercepted communications. The documents were allegedly transmitted through non-government email accounts, stored at Bolton’s home in Bethesda, Maryland, and shared with two relatives who lacked security clearances.
Authorities also allege Bolton failed to disclose that his compromised personal email account contained classified national defense information when he reported the cyber intrusion to law enforcement.
Plea resolves all 18 counts
“John Bolton held a position of extraordinary public trust as the country’s top National Security Advisor, and he betrayed that trust, jeopardizing our nation’s security,” said Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Hayden O’Byrne of the Justice Department’s National Security Division.
“Today’s resolution ought to send a message to other public officials whom the public has entrusted with classified, national defense information. If you willfully mishandle these state secrets, the Department of Justice, led by the National Security Division, will investigate and prosecute you to the fullest extent of the law.”
Assistant Director Roman Rozhavsky of the FBI Counterintelligence and Espionage Division said, “As a former national security advisor, Bolton knew such careless disregard for the law could open the door for foreign adversaries to get their hands on incredibly sensitive and classified information, and that’s exactly what happened in this case.”
Under the plea agreement, Bolton faces a maximum sentence of five years in federal prison and agreed to pay a $2.25 million fine. The agreement also states that, under federal law, his conviction bars him and his survivors from receiving his federal retirement annuity. U.S. District Judge Theodore D. Chuang scheduled sentencing for Oct. 28.
The case was investigated by the FBI Baltimore Field Office with assistance from the FBI’s Counterintelligence and Espionage Division, the New York Field Office, and the Operational Technology Division.
Key Points
- Former National Security Adviser John Bolton pleaded guilty to unlawfully retaining national defense information.
- Prosecutors said he transmitted Top Secret information through personal accounts, including one later hacked by an alleged Iranian cyber actor.
- Bolton faces up to five years in prison, agreed to pay a $2.25 million fine, and forfeits his federal retirement benefits under the plea agreement.
