JUST IN: Trump Foe John Bolton to Plead Guilty in Classified Documents Probe, Pay $2M Fine

(Rod Lamkey, Jr./AP photo)

John Bolton, a vocal critic of President Donald Trump who was once his national security adviser, is expected to plead guilty to mishandling classified documents and pay a hefty $2 million fine, CNN reported on Thursday.

The former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations will plead guilty to one count of illegal retention of sensitive national security documents, a source told the network.

Bolton surrendered to authorities in October 2025 to face Espionage Act charges over his alleged mishandling of classified information.

The 26-page, 18-count indictment, filed in federal court in Maryland, accused Bolton of transmitting and retaining highly sensitive material, including diary entries he shared with two subjects during his time in the White House.

CNN sources have identified those two individuals as Bolton’s wife and daughter.

Prosecutors said the notes “described in detail Bolton’s daily activities as the National Security Advisor,” including classified settings and briefings.

At the time, Bolton denied any wrongdoing, vowing to “defend my lawful conduct and to expose [Trump’s] abuse of power.”

Bolton was indicted after federal agents raided his Bethesda, Maryland, home in August 2025, but the investigation began during the Biden administration.

During the raid, the feds confiscated documents marked “secret,” “confidential,” and “classified,” including some referencing weapons of mass destruction. Court filings show investigators also collected electronics and files labeled “Trump I–IV.”

Bolton served as Trump’s national security adviser back in his first term, but after leaving the administration, he became a fervent critic of the president.

While Trump asserted in a September 2019 tweet that he had informed Bolton that his “services” were “no longer needed,” prompting the longtime GOP foreign policy hand to offer his resignation, Bolton asserted that he had initiated his own exit, and Trump didn’t ask for his resignation “directly or indirectly.”

This is a developing story and has been updated.

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