John Bolton, who served as National Security Advisor to President Donald Trump, is planning to plead guilty to a single felony count of illegally retaining sensitive national security information. This plea deal, expected to be submitted at a re-arraignment hearing in federal court in Maryland on June 26, includes a substantial fine of $2.25 million.
Bolton was initially indicted last year on 18 counts, including both transmission and retention of classified information. Prosecutors alleged that from April 2018 to August 2025, Bolton shared over 1,000 pages of information about his daily activities, some classified up to the Top Secret/Sensitive Compartmented Information (SCI) level, with two unauthorized relatives. This information, often in "diary-like" entries, was reportedly shared through personal email accounts (like AOL and Google) and a commercial messaging app. The charges also included unlawfully retaining classified documents, writings, and notes at his home in Montgomery County, Maryland.
The plea agreement focuses on the retention of sensitive national security information, rather than the alleged transmission of classified documents. While a conviction for illegal retention can carry a sentence of up to 60 months in prison, the deal allows Bolton to potentially avoid any prison time, with the final sentence to be determined by the judge. The charges against Bolton did not allege that he shared information with foreign adversaries and sources indicated his intention is to accept responsibility for his actions.
This case drew comparisons to that of former CIA Director David Petraeus, who pleaded guilty in 2015 to one count of retaining classified information. The FBI's investigation into Bolton intensified following a breach of his email by suspected Iranian hackers, which led to the discovery of these "diary-like entries" containing top secret information. Federal agents subsequently searched his home last summer, finding documents marked as classified.
