In a dramatic twist, former National Security Advisor John Bolton has been indicted on charges related to the mishandling of classified information. This unexpected legal turn could potentially land one of President Donald Trump’s most vocal critics behind bars for a decade.

The indictment, issued by a federal grand jury in Maryland, alleges that Bolton transmitted national security documents via his personal AOL email account, a breach that has now led to this serious accusation.

News of Bolton’s indictment reached the Oval Office while President Trump was addressing other matters. When informed, Trump expressed surprise, stating, “I didn’t know that, you’re telling me for the first time.” He went on to label Bolton as “a bad person” and “a bad guy,” adding, “Too bad, but that’s the way it goes,” while claiming he had not reviewed the particulars of Bolton’s case beforehand.

This indictment follows a significant development two months prior, when FBI agents executed a search of Bolton’s office in Washington, D.C., and his home in suburban Maryland. This investigation has now culminated in the formal charges against him.

The president said he hadn’t reviewed the case against Bolton in advance. 

The indictment comes two months after FBI agents raided Bolton’s Washington, D.C. office and suburban Maryland home.

The FBI was looking for possible violations of the Espionage Act, a law that dates back to 1917 and makes unauthorized possession of national security documents illegal. 

At Bolton’s D.C. office, federal agents discovered documents marked ‘confidential’ that referenced weapons of mass destruction, according to unsealed court records.

Former National Security Advisor John Bolton is expected to be indicted. After serving in President Donald Trump’s first term, he became a staunch critic of the president

FBI agents remove boxes from the Washington, D.C. office of former Trump National Security Advisor John Bolton on August 22 

At his Maryland home, agents seized two cell phones, documents in folders labeled ‘Trump I-IV’ and a binder labeled ‘statements and reflections to Allied Strikes,’ the court records also showed. 

Court records also said a foreign entity had hacked Bolton’s email account, but the details were redacted. 

Bolton was tapped as Trump’s third national security adviser during his first term after previously serving as President George W. Bush’s ambassador to the United Nations. 

After leaving the Trump White House, Bolton became a prominent critic of the president, calling the former real estate developer ‘stunningly uninformed’ in his memoir, which the Trump administration had tried to block.  

Trump indicated early on in his second term that Bolton would be a top target in his vengeance campaign. 

Just a day after his swearing-in, Trump had Bolton’s Secret Service detail pulled. 

Bolton – and Trump – had been under assassination threat from Iran due to their roles in the January 2020 American drone strike that killed Quds Force commander Qasem Soleimani. 

The next day, Trump pulled Bolton’s security clearance. 

Bolton waves to the press on the day his house was raided by FBI agents. 

During the raids of Bolton’s office and home, Trump said he didn’t know about it in advance. 

‘I saw it on television this morning,’ Trump said. ‘I’m not a fan of John Bolton. He’s a real, sort of a low-life,’ the president also commented.

But in an accidental Truth Social post last month, the president appeared to be pushing Attorney General Pam Bondi to prosecute his political enemies – naming former FBI Director James Comey, New York Attorney General Letitia James and California Democratic Sen. Adam Schiff. 

Days later, Comey was indicted by a federal grand jury over charges related to making false statements to Congress. 

Trump fired Comey in 2017 amid the Russia probe, which the president has labeled a ‘hoax.’  

Last week, James was indicted by a federal grand jury in Virginia on one count of bank fraud and one count of making false statements to a financial institution. 

James had previously brought fraud charges against the president and his company.  

A spokesperson for Bolton’s attorney Abbe Lowell did not immediately respond to the Daily Mail’s request for comment.