John Bolton, who served as national security adviser during US President Donald Trump’s first appointment to office, pleaded guilty in federal court on Friday to one count of illegally possessing classified information.
U.S. District Judge Theodore D. Chuang of the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland is presiding over the case.
Bolton on guilty plea: ‘I’m sorry about it’
“I’m sorry about it,” Bolton told Judge Chuang in Greenbelt, Maryland, after pleading guilty to the charge. Bolton’s lawyer Abbey Lovell said Bolton was “doing what real leaders do” by pleading guilty.
Bolton, who is 77, reached a deal with prosecutors that will either result in no prison sentence or a shorter sentence than originally expected.
When Bolton was convicted, prosecutors sought a possible 10-year prison sentence for Bolton and 18 charges. Under the plea agreement, Bolton could face up to five years in prison or perhaps none at all, depending on what the judge decides at his Oct. 28 sentencing date.
Bolton will also have to pay a $2.25 million (€1.98 million) fine as part of the plea agreement.
In addition, Bolton will give up his government pension, perform 100 hours of community service and discuss with intelligence community and U.S. Justice Department officials.
Bolton is accused of sharing classified information with two “unauthorized individuals” – reportedly his wife and daughter. The information is believed to have previously been used in a tell-all book on his time in the Trump administration: “The Room Where It Happened.”
U.S. Attorney for the District of Maryland Kelly O. Hayes said Bolton “put our national security at grave risk.” Bolton’s emails were reportedly targeted by an Iranian hacker.
How Trump sees Bolton: From ‘tough cookie’ to ‘sleazebag’
Bolton was Trump’s national security adviser from April 2018 until his resignation in September 2019. The resignation was reportedly due to Bolton’s disagreements with the President on issues such as negotiations with the Afghan Taliban and talks with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.
Bolton also served as US Ambassador to the United Nations during the tenure of former President George W. Bush. He was a strong supporter of the US invasion of Iraq in 2003.
In the later years of the Bush administration, Bolton was a frequent guest on the American conservative broadcaster Fox News, where he likely caught Trump’s attention. In 2015, Trump said he liked Bolton and called him a “tough cookie.”
However, after leaving the Trump administration in 2018, Bolton criticized Trump’s anarchic leadership style and attraction to autocratic leaders. Trump, in turn, has called Bolton a “deceived hypocrite” and a “despicable man.”
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Edited by: Sam Dusan Inayatullah