Washington, 17 October 2025 (dpa/MIA) - Former US national security adviser John Bolton, one of President Donald Trump's fiercest critics, has been charged with mishandling classified defence information.

Bolton is accused of transmitting and unlawfully retaining top-secret documents, the Justice Department said on Thursday. A grand jury issued the indictment.

"Anyone who abuses a position of power and jeopardizes our national security will be held accountable," US Attorney General Pam Bondi said in a statement. "No one is above the law."

FBI Director Kash Patel said federal investigators found that Bolton allegedly transmitted top-secret information through personal online accounts and kept the documents at his home, in direct violation of federal law.

Bolton's lawyer Abbe Lowell told US broadcaster CNN that Bolton did not unlawfully share or store any information.

"The underlying facts in this case were investigated and resolved years ago," Lowell said in a statement.

"These charges stem from portions of Amb. Bolton's personal diaries over his 45-year career – records that are unclassified, shared only with his immediate family, and known to the FBI as far back as 2021," he said.

"Like many public officials throughout history, Amb. Bolton kept diaries – that is not a crime."

The 76-year-old is the latest prominent Trump opponent to face prosecution. Just weeks ago, former FBI director James Comey was indicted in a case reportedly brought under pressure from Trump.

Critics of the president had warned that Comey - accused of making false statements - might only be the first of several cases in which Trump seeks to target political adversaries. Trump, however, said the proceedings were about "justice."

The FBI searched Bolton's residence in August - an operation observers also viewed as a show of force by the White House.

Bolton served as Trump's national security adviser during his first term (2017-2021). A veteran diplomat and known foreign policy hardliner, he resigned after about 18 months in a dispute with Trump.

In 2020, Bolton published a tell-all book, "The Room Where It Happened," portraying Trump in highly critical terms. The Trump administration had unsuccessfully tried to block its release, accusing Bolton of revealing classified information.

While investigations were at one point opened into the alleged disclosure of secrets, those proceedings were later dropped.

Shortly after beginning his second term, Trump revoked Bolton's Secret Service protection - a service typically extended to senior political figures, including some former officeholders.

Bolton recently renewed his criticism of Trump, this time over his handling of Russian President Vladimir Putin amid the war in Ukraine.

Photo: EPA