Ambassador John Bolton sits for an interview with USA TODAY's Washington, DC bureau chief Susan Page in advance of the release of his book, 'In the Room Where It Happened.'

Federal law enforcement obtained documents labeled "classified," "secret" and "confidential" during a search of former National Security Adviser John Bolton's office in August, according to court filings.

A government special agent described the alleged documents in a written inventory of seized property that was submitted to a Washington, DC, federal court and obtained by Politico. They allegedly included travel memo documents with pages labeled "secret," documents tied to a U.S. mission to the United Nations and to U.S. communications strategy that were labeled "confidential," and documents on weapons of mass destruction that were labeled "classified."

Abbe Lowell, a lawyer for Bolton, told USA TODAY in a statement that many of the referenced materials were "previously approved" in a review before Bolton published his 2020 book, "The Room Where It Happened: A White House Memoir."

"These are the kinds of ordinary records, many of which are 20 years old or more, that would be kept by a 40-year career official who served at the State Department, as an Assistant Attorney General, the U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, and the National Security Advisor," according to Lowell's statement.

"Specifically, the documents with dated classification markings from the period from 1998 to 2006, beginning with Amb. Bolton’s time in the George W. Bush Administration. An objective and thorough review will show nothing inappropriate was stored or kept by Amb. Bolton," Lowell said.

Bolton, who served as U.S. ambassador to the United Nations under President George W. Bush, was a national security adviser to President Donald Trump during his first administration, but has since been a bitter critic of Trump.

Bolton told USA TODAY in 2020 that he "probably would have" convicted Trump if he had been a senator during Trump's first impeachment trial, in which Trump was accused of abusing power by withholding aid to Ukraine to pressure its government to investigate then-former Vice President Joe Biden and his son. The Senate acquitted Trump on that charge, largely along party lines.

The search of Bolton's office was carried out on Aug. 22 under a court-authorized warrant, according to the filings. In an application for that warrant, an FBI special agent – whose name has been redacted from the released filings – alleged Bolton likely violated U.S. laws that protect national defense information.

Bolton isn't the only Trump critic to come under investigative scrutiny since the president took office in January.

The Department of Justice has also reportedly opened an investigation into New York Attorney General Letitia James, who brought a major civil fraud lawsuit against Trump and his business associates. And the U.S. Office of Special Counsel is running an investigation into former federal prosecutor Jack Smith's conduct in cases brought against Trump, which were dropped after Trump won the 2024 election.

The investigations have prompted concerns that Trump is using his second term to pursue a revenge campaign against perceived enemies.

In a Sept. 20 post on Truth Social, Trump addressed Attorney General Pam Bondi publicly, saying "JUSTICE MUST BE SERVED, NOW!!!" and suggesting that multiple people tied to past investigations into him – the New York attorney general, former FBI Director James Comey and California Democratic Sen. Adam Schiff – should be indicted.

In a separate Truth Social post also on Sept. 20, Trump claimed he fired Erik Siebert, who until recently was U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia. Trump said he did so because Siebert allegedly supported Democratic senators from Virginia.

Multiple news outlets, including The Washington Post and The New York Times, reported Siebert resigned amid pressure from the Trump administration over his decision not to pursue an indictment against James, concluding there wasn't sufficient evidence to support mortgage fraud charges. The news reports cited multiple unnamed sources familiar with the matter.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: FBI says it obtained 'classified' and 'secret' documents from John Bolton's office

Reporting by Aysha Bagchi, USA TODAY / USA TODAY

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