WASHINGTON
John Bolton, US President Donald Trump's onetime national security advisor turned critic, was charged Thursday with mishandling classified information.
Bolton was indicted in federal court in Maryland on eight counts of transmitting national security information and 10 counts of retention of national defense information.
"Bolton abused his position as National Security Advisor by sharing more than a thousand pages of information about his day-to-day activities as the National Security Advisor -- including information relating to the national defense which was classified up to the top secret/SCI level -- with two unauthorized individuals," prosecutors wrote in the indictment.
"Bolton also unlawfully retained documents, writings, and notes relating to the national defense, including information classified up to the top secret/SCI level, in his home in Montgomery County, Maryland," they added.
Asked about the charges, Trump said he was unaware of the matter, but said Bolton is a "bad person."
"I think he's a bad guy. Yeah, he's a bad guy. It's too bad, but that's the way it goes," he said during a White House press conference.
The filing of charges against Bolton came after the FBI raided his home in the Maryland suburbs outside of Washington, D.C. in which federal investigators seized cell phones, documents, digital storage devices and other items.
The charges against Bolton came after two other focuses of Trump's consternation -- New York Attorney General Letitia James and ex-FBI Director James Comey -- were also indicted.
"For four decades, I have devoted my life to America’s foreign policy and national security. I would never compromise those goals. I tried to do that during my tenure in the first Trump Administration but resigned when it became impossible to do so," Bolton said in a statement.
"Donald Trump’s retribution against me began then, continued when he tried unsuccessfully to block the publication of my book, The Room Where It Happened, before the 2020 election, and became one of his rallying cries in his re-election campaign," he continued. "Now, I have become the latest target in weaponizing the Justice Department to charge those he deems to be his enemies with charges that were declined before or distort the facts."
FBI Director Kash Patel appeared to push back on any suggestion that the charges against Bolton are politically-motivated, saying in a statement that "the case was based on meticulous work from dedicated career professionals at the FBI who followed the facts without fear or favor."
"Weaponization of justice will not be tolerated, and this FBI will stop at nothing to bring to justice anyone who threatens our national security," he said.
If convicted, Bolton faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison for each of the 18 counts. The Justice Department said that a federal district court judge will determine any sentence handed down according to the federal sentencing guidelines
"There is one tier of justice for all Americans,” US Attorney General Pam Bondi said in a statement. "Anyone who abuses a position of power and jeopardizes our national security will be held accountable. No one is above the law."
Bolton said the charges against him are part of Trump's intimidation tactics against his political enemies, making reference to the president taking a page out of the playbook of General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union Joseph Stalin's head of secret police: "You show me the man, and I'll show you the crime."
"These charges are not just about (Trump's) focus on me or my diaries, but his intensive effort to intimidate his opponents, to ensure that he alone determines what is said about his conduct," said Bolton.
"Dissent and disagreement are foundational to America’s constitutional system, and vitally important to our freedom," he added. "I look forward to the fight to defend my lawful conduct and to expose his abuse of power."