Unsealed documents revealed the manner in which Iranian hackers allegedly taunted former U.S. National Security Advisor John Bolton after pulling classified files from his email account.
After having a criminal inquiry from the Justice Department dropped during President Joe Biden’s administration, the onetime U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations was indicted in October on 18 counts related to improperly handling classified materials. Now, according to an affidavit reviewed by Fox News Digital, within weeks, Bolton’s email had been accessed by agents believed to be associated with Iran who taunted the former official as “Mr. Mustache.”
According to the search warrant, Bolton’s assistant contacted the FBI in July 2021, the month after Biden’s DOJ allegedly dropped the investigation for political reasons, to inform the bureau that Iran had accessed the email account.
“The e-mail, the subject of which was ‘Re: New PW,’ as forwarded to the FBI, stated: ‘I do not think you would be interested in the FBI being aware of the leaked content of John’s email (some of which have been attached), especially after the recent acquittal. This could be the biggest scandal since Hillary’s emails were leaked, but this time on the GOP side! Contact me before it’s too late,'” read the warrant referring to former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and her use of a private server.
In August 2021, after the assistant had assured the FBI all of Bolton’s emails would be deleted, another email from the Iranian actor was flagged that read, “OK John…as you want (apparently), we’ll disseminate the expurgated sections of your book by reference to your leaked email.”
“Good luck, Mr. Mustache!” the transmission snarked.
Also covered in the unsealed documents were details pertaining to Bolton’s actions after his departure from President Donald Trump’s first administration in September 2019. This included the timing of the installation of a sensitive compartmented information facility (SCIF) in Bolton’s home, its subsequent decertification, and his efforts to get a new one after the government came to collect all classified documents in his possession.
“Based on my education, training, and experience, I know that the installation of a SCIF within the TARGET RESIDENCE indicated that Bolton anticipated storing classified materials within the TARGET RESIDENCE during his tenure as APNSA,” read the affidavit. “Once he was no longer APNSA, effective Sept. 10, 2019, his need-to-know expired, and any authorization for having access to the classified documents in the TARGET RESIDENCE was subsequently revoked.”
Despite assurances from his staff that there were no longer classified documents in his possession, the affidavit went on to detail that Bolton’s submission of his manuscript for review in December 2019 to National Security Council Senior Director for Records Ellen Knight found her calling for a resubmission as she’d never seen “that level of classified material and specificity of detail” in such a document, including “quotes from foreign leaders from negotiations with the President and details of foreign military actions which had not yet been publicly acknowledged by the foreign governments.”
“Based on her experience … Knight surmised that Bolton either had an incredible memory or had to be writing from notes he would have taken as APNSA,” the document continued. “Knight explained that any such notes were likely classified, fully under the PRA (Presidential Records Act), and should have been turned over by Bolton at the conclusion of his government service.”
Two months later, Bolton’s assistant was said to have reached out to the National Security Council requesting the reinstallation of a SCIF in his home, only to be told accreditation was “not a viable option” more than a year before the hack took place.
The documents in question were said to have included details about plans for military action and covert action by a foreign adversary, sensitive information shared by a liaison partner with the U.S. intelligence community, intelligence about potential future attacks on another country by an adversary, and more.
Following his indictment on eight counts of transmission of national defense information and ten counts of retention of national defense information, Bolton pled not guilty to all charges and, if convicted, faces up to ten years’ incarceration per count as well as a fine of up to $250,000 per count.
Native of Brooklyn, NY, Kevin Haggerty is a graduate of Hunter College where he studied Cultural Anthropology and Geography. An avid reader and truth seeker, he currently resides in Texas with his wife and their dog and, when he isn't researching current events and their impacts, you'll find him spending time with friends and family or working on his next novel.
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