John Bolton indicted for his handling of security documents

by · UPI

Oct. 16 (UPI) -- A U.S. District Court for Maryland grand jury on Thursday indicted former National Security adviser John Bolton for allegedly illegally holding and sharing national security information.

The grand jury indicted Bolton, 76, on 18 counts that accuse him of holding or sharing the documents that he obtained while he was President Donald Trump's National Security adviser from 2018 to 2019, the New York Post reported.

Each count carries a maximum prison sentence of up to 10 years if Bolton is convicted.

Trump fired Bolton in 2019 and views him as a political enemy. He has joined former FBI Director James Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James in being accused of federal crimes, according to The New York Times.

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The Biden administration initiated the investigation of Bolton after intelligence agencies aired concerns regarding potential evidence against him.

The FBI in August searched Bolton's Washington office and his home in Maryland and removed several boxes containing papers, computer files and other items, The New York Times reported.

Investigators discovered some documents that are marked with low-level classifications and noted some emails sent by Bolton appeared to have been taken from classified documents.

Bolton shared the email messages with others ahead of the release of his 2020 book titled "The Room Where It Happened."

The Trump administration sought to delay the book's release in 2020 amid a Justice Department investigation regarding Bolton's possible improper handling of classified information.

At least one foreign nation obtained some of Bolton's emails that might have compromised national security, and a judge afterward ruled Bolton might have published classified information.

A criminal investigation into the matter was delayed for several years until this summer, when investigators looked into potential violations of the Espionage Act of 1917.

Federal prosecutors met on Saturday to discuss how they would proceed with the case, which resulted in Thursday's 18-count indictment.

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President Donald Trump, along with FBI Director Kash Patel and Attorney General Pam Bondi, delivers remarks during a press conference in the Oval Office of the White House on Wednesday. Trump announced the results of Operation Summer Heat, a federal nationwide violent crime reduction operation. Photo by Jim Lo Scalzo/UPI | License Photo

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