Ex-CIA official arrested over $40m gold bars found in Virginia home

A former U.S. government official has been arrested after FBI investigators discovered hundreds of gold bars valued at over $40 million (£29.6 million) in his home in Virginia.

David Rush reportedly made multiple requests to the U.S. government over the past year to receive the gold bars for “work-related expenses,” according to court documents. He has been charged with the criminal theft of public money in a complaint filed last week.

According to the New York Times, Rush held a senior position at the CIA until recently. He was arrested and is currently being held in detention until his hearing later this week. His attorney has declined to comment on the case.

FBI agents also found about $2 million in U.S. currency in Rush’s home, along with 35 luxury watches, many of which were Rolexes.

Court documents state that Rush had top-secret clearance and access to classified information.

He has been accused of lying about his education and military service when applying for his government position and fraudulently taking military leave while collecting thousands of dollars in pay.

Rush is identified as a former senior executive in a U.S. government agency located in Virginia. Regarding Rush’s case, the FBI issued a statement confirming that an individual was arrested on May 19 following a referral from the CIA.

“After a CIA internal investigation identified potential violations of the law, CIA Director John Ratcliffe referred the information to the FBI for a law enforcement investigation,” the FBI said.

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Between November 2025 and March 2026, Rush made several requests to the US government “to obtain a significant quantity of foreign currency and tens of millions of dollars in gold bars for work-related expenses”, which he later received, court documents state.

During a review, the CIA “was unable to locate the gold bars or significant amounts of the foreign currency”, court documents state.

The government was also unable to locate “any record of Rush providing information to his employer regarding the disposition of the currency or gold bars that he received for work-related purposes”.

The FBI then executed a search warrant for Rush’s home in Virginia on 18 May.

During the search, FBI agents seized approximately 303 gold bars, each of which weighs approximately one kilogram, the agency said in court documents. Based on the current price of gold, the estimated value exceeds $40m, they added.

The court documents do not indicate why Rush kept the gold bars and currency in his home.