Ex-Trump adviser John Bolton indicted by federal grand jury

John Bolton, the former national security adviser to President Donald Trump, has been indicted by a federal grand jury in Maryland. He is facing 18 charges, including eight counts of transmission of national defense information and 10 counts of retention of national defense information.

According to the indictment, Bolton shared over a thousand pages of classified information with two unauthorized individuals who were related to him during his time as national security adviser to Trump. Print-outs of diary entries were also discovered in Bolton's home.

Bolton is expected to surrender to authorities at the federal court in Greenbelt. The case has been assigned to Judge Theodore D. Chuang, appointed by President Barack Obama in 2014.

FBI Director Kash Patel stated that Bolton allegedly transmitted top-secret information using personal online accounts and kept these documents in his house, violating federal law. Bolton is the third high-profile Trump political adversary to be indicted recently.

In response, Bolton accused Trump of targeting him through the Justice Department. He defended his actions, stating that his book had been reviewed and approved by clearance officials and that no charges were filed against him during the previous administration. Bolton's lawyer emphasized that the charges relate to unclassified personal diaries shared only with his family.

Bolton is accused of sharing classified information with his wife and daughter via email. FBI agents searched his home and office, seizing documents labeled as classified, including information on weapons of mass destruction. The investigation also involves a hack of Bolton's AOL email account, suspected to be carried out by a foreign advisory, with Iran being a top suspect.