A former US government official has been remanded in custody after FBI investigators found hundreds of gold bars in his home in Virginia during searches, the BBC reports. The FBI is also investigating whether he lied about his education and military experience.
According to court documents, David Rush was arrested last week on charges of theft of public money. He has made several requests to the US government to receive the bullion to cover “expenses related to professional activity” over the past year.
According to the New York Times, Rush held a senior position within the CIA until recently.
He is currently in custody pending his hearing this week.
What the FBI found in the searches
Between November 2025 and March of this year, Rush made several requests to the government to obtain large sums of foreign currency and gold bullion worth tens of millions of dollars for expenses related to his professional activity, according to court documents.
During a check, the CIA “was unable to locate gold bars or significant amounts of foreign currency.”
Authorities also failed to find “any evidence that Rush provided his employer with information regarding the destination of any money or gold bars he received for business purposes.”
The FBI raided Rush's home in Virginia on May 18.
During the search, FBI agents found approximately 303 gold bars, each weighing approximately one kilogram, the agency said in court documents. Based on the current price of gold, the estimated value exceeds $40 million.
Agents also discovered about $2 million in Rush's home, along with 35 luxury watches, many of them Rolexes.
Lies on CV
The FBI also accuses Rush of lying to the United States Navy when he enlisted in 1997, presenting transcripts and other documents that falsely indicated he earned a bachelor's degree from Clemson University, according to CBS News.
Because of this fake degree, Rush was commissioned a second lieutenant in the United States Navy Reserve in 2004 and was honorably discharged in 2015.
