(NewsNation) — A grand jury has indicted John Bolton, an adviser-turned-nemesis of President Trump, on charges that he mishandled classified documents.
The charges stem from FBI searches in August of Bolton’s house and office as agents sought classified information.
Read the full indictment:
Bolton is charged with eight counts of transmission of national defense information, or NDI, and 10 counts of unlawful retention of NDI.
If convicted, Bolton would face a maximum of 10 years in prison for each count.
“The FBI’s investigation revealed that John Bolton allegedly transmitted top secret information using personal online accounts and retained said documents in his house in direct violation of federal law,” said FBI Director Kash Patel.
Prosecutors say Bolton illegally transmitted NDI using personal email and messaging accounts, including documents that revealed intelligence about future attacks and foreign adversaries.
Investigators also say Bolton illegally retained classified material at his home, including information on sources and collection methods used to gather intelligence about a foreign adversary.
An FBI affidavit publicly released last month detailed agents’ belief that Bolton might have violated the Espionage Act by mishandling national defense information. The affidavit confirmed the Trump administration believed Bolton may have wrongly revealed classified information in drafting his memoir, “The Room Where It Happened.”
Bolton, in a defiant statement released later Thursday, denied wrongdoing and claimed he was being targeted by the White House. Trump fired Bolton in 2019, and the latter has been since been a frequent critic of the Republican president, who began a second term in office in January.
“For four decades, I have devoted my life to America’s foreign policy and national security. I would never compromise those goals,” Bolton said.