Inside John Bolton’s Plea Deal: Former Trump Adviser Admits Guilt Over Classified Secrets

Former National Security Adviser John Bolton has agreed to plead guilty to a single felony count of illegally retaining sensitive national security information, dramatically narrowing a case that originally included 18 criminal charges.

According to multiple reports, Bolton is expected to formally enter the guilty plea during a June 26 hearing in federal court in Maryland. As part of the agreement, he has also agreed to pay a fine of approximately $2.25 million.

The Justice Department declined to comment on the agreement when contacted by The Daily Wire, referring inquiries to the court docket.

The plea deal significantly reduces Bolton’s legal exposure. Federal prosecutors originally charged the former Trump administration official in October 2025 with eight counts of transmitting national defense information and ten counts of unlawfully retaining that information.

Under the agreement, Bolton will plead guilty to just one count of illegal retention of national security information. The charge carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison, though reports indicate he could ultimately receive anything from probation to a prison sentence.

According to sources familiar with the matter, the conduct underlying the plea centers on  diary-style entries Bolton maintained during his time as national security adviser. The information was allegedly contained in electronic diary entries that he shared with family members.

Importantly, the plea does not involve allegations that Bolton provided classified documents to foreign governments or publicly released classified materials. “There’s no allegation that he took home any classified documents, or that he leaked any documents or that he shared any documents with foreign adversaries,” one source familiar with the case told NBC News.

Reports also indicate Bolton is not pleading guilty to the transmission-related charges that were included in the original indictment. The agreement comes after prosecutors alleged Bolton improperly retained sensitive information from his time in the Trump administration and shared more than 1,000 pages of information through a personal email account with unauthorized recipients, widely reported to be family members.

Federal investigators later examined Bolton’s handling of the information after his personal email account was reportedly compromised by Iranian-linked hackers.

Bolton, who served as President Donald Trump’s national security adviser from April 2018 until September 2019, had previously pleaded not guilty and repeatedly defended his conduct.

A source close to Bolton told NBC News that the former national security adviser agreed to the plea in part to avoid a trial that could require additional classified information to be disclosed in court. “This was a very difficult decision for him,” the source said. “Most importantly, he is doing what leaders do and taking responsibility.”

Following the June 26 hearing, a federal judge will have up to 90 days to determine Bolton’s sentence.