Ex-Trump adviser Bolton admits to keeping classified material
Bolton accepted plea deal over single count of retaining national security information, capping case that began with his indictment last year
WASHINGTON, United States (MNTV) — John Bolton, who served as national security adviser during President Donald Trump’s first term, has admitted to unlawfully holding onto national security information, resolving a criminal case that grew out of his time in that role, media outlets reported Friday.
The plea, entered at a federal courthouse in Greenbelt, Maryland, narrows what began in 2025 as a broader indictment on several classified-information counts down to a single charge. In return, the government will ask the court to cap any prison term at five years, according to the reports.
NBC News reported that the deal also requires Bolton to pay $2.25 million and sets his sentencing for Oct. 28.
The information at the centre of the case, he told the court, was an entry from an electronic diary that he had passed to two relatives.
Once one of Trump’s senior aides, Bolton went on to become a sharp public critic of the president. The original charges accused him of both transmitting and retaining defense-related information. Neither prosecutors nor his lawyers commented after the hearing.
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