John Bolton, former national security advisor during Donald Trump's first term who later became one of his most fervent critics, was indicted by a federal jury in the United States on Thursday, as reported by AFP.
The 76-year-old diplomat, who had been under investigation for a long time for mishandling classified information, becomes the third opponent of the American president to face criminal charges in recent weeks.
The formal accusation by the U.S. justice system includes charges against Bolton for sharing secret documents via email with two "unauthorized individuals" who have not been identified.
According to the Department of Justice, the documents "revealed intelligence information about future attacks, foreign adversaries, and foreign policy relationships."
"Anyone who abuses a position of power and jeopardizes our national security will be held accountable," said U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi in a statement.
In a statement to the U.S. media, Bolton said he had "become the latest target in the instrumentalization of the Department of Justice (...) with charges that had already been dismissed before."
When asked about Bolton's indictment, Trump told White House reporters that the former advisor was a "bad person."
Bolton's indictment comes after Trump's Department of Justice charged two other prominent critics of the president: New York Attorney General Letitia James and former FBI Director James Comey.
After his tenure as national security advisor, Bolton infuriated the government with the release of a highly critical book: 'The Room Where it Happened'.
Since then, he has become a very visible and combative detractor of Trump. He has frequently appeared on news programs and in print media to condemn Trump, describing him as "unfit to be president."