President Donald Trump's former national security adviser, John Bolton, has been indicted on 18 counts under the Espionage Act for allegedly mishandling classified information. He is accused of sharing more than 1,000 pages of material related to national defense with unauthorized individuals.

The indictment marks the third time in recent weeks the Department of Justice has secured criminal charges against one of Trump's critics, including former FBI Director James Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James.

According to the prosecutors, Bolton had shared classified national defense information, including intelligence briefings and discussions with foreign leaders, with unauthorized individuals between 2018 and 2025.

Prosecutors also allege that Bolton’s personal email, containing classified files, was hacked by Iran-linked cyber actors. He reported the breach but didn’t disclose that classified material was stored there

Although the indictment doesn’t mention who the unauthorized individuals are, some reports have speculated that they could be Bolton’s relatives and that the material may have been related to a book he was writing.

Bolton's lawyer, Abbe Lowell, said Bolton did not unlawfully share or store any information.

In a statement, Bolton said, "I look forward to the fight to defend my lawful conduct and to expose his abuse of power."

When asked by reporters at the White House about the Bolton indictment on Thursday, Trump said: "He's a bad guy."

Interestingly, Donald Trump himself was previously charged under the same law for classified records kept at his Florida home.

However, the case had to be dropped after he won the 2024 reelection.