Former US National Security Adviser John Bolton pleaded guilty on Friday to retaining classified national defense information. This marked a significant development for one of President Donald Trump’s former key advisors who later became a vocal critic. Bolton initially pleaded not guilty to an 18-count indictment but changed his plea in federal court in Greenbelt, Maryland.
Under the plea agreement, Bolton admitted to retaining one count of national defense information. Prosecutors have agreed to recommend a maximum sentence of five years in prison along with a $2.25 million fine. The charges against Bolton included allegations of retaining and sharing sensitive national security information while working on his memoir post his tenure in the Trump administration.
Federal prosecutors accused Bolton of keeping “diary-like” records containing classified information and sending some to relatives via a personal email account. The account was reportedly compromised by hackers linked to Iran. Bolton served as Trump’s National Security Adviser from 2018 until his dismissal in 2019 due to policy disagreements.
The Justice Department investigated Bolton for mishandling classified information related to his book “The Room Where It Happened.” Trump, who has been critical of Bolton, commented on the plea, calling him “a very dishonest guy.” Bolton’s guilty plea is the first conviction among high-profile cases involving Trump critics.
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