C.I.A. Officer Found With Gold Bars Said to Have Created Fake Spy Program [View all]

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Source: New York Times

C.I.A. Officer Found With Gold Bars Said to Have Created Fake Spy Program

A federal judge has ruled that David Rush, the C.I.A. employee, must remain in detention. U.S. officials say Mr. Rush funneled millions in federal funds to himself.


The George Bush Center for Intelligence at the Central Intelligence Agency in Langley, Va. Tom Brenner for The New York Times

By Julian E. Barnes and Edward Wong
Reporting from Washington

June 6, 2026
Updated 4:06 p.m. ET

A C.I.A. employee who was found recently with $40 million of gold bars in his house had created a secret intelligence program to funnel millions of dollars from the federal government to himself, according to two U.S. officials. (1) ... David Rush, the employee, created a fake "special access program," a sensitive intelligence tool that has highly limited visibility even within the C.I.A., the officials said.

Mr. Rush was arrested late last month and charged with theft of public funds based on a lie about joining the Navy Reserve after serving in that branch of the military, from which he was discharged in 2015, according to court documents. Prosecutors accused him of getting unwarranted pay by filling out time sheets based on the fraudulent claim of being a Navy reservist.

Mr. Rush, a C.I.A. officer for 17 years, was arrested on May 19 after F.B.I. agents found 303 gold bars weighing about one kilogram each in Mr. Rush's home, according to an affidavit. The agents also seized nearly three dozen luxury watches, many of them Rolexes.

The U.S. officials who said that Mr. Rush had created a fake "special access program" did not provide details of the program, or explain how Mr. Rush used it to take government money. The Washington Post reported earlier on Mr. Rush's use of the fake program. (2) {snip} Jessica Carmichael, a lawyer for Mr. Rush, declined to comment.

{snip}

https://www.nytimes.com/by/julian-e-barnes
https://www.nytimes.com/by/edward-wong

(1) https://www.nytimes.com/2026/05/27/us/politics/fbi-arrest-cia-official-gold-bars.html
(2) https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2026/06/05/cia-officer-accused-stealing-gold-bars-created-fake-black-box-spy-program/

Read more: https://www.nytimes.com/2026/06/06/us/politics/cia-officer-gold-fake-spy-program.html?unlocked_article_code=1.oFA.yWNG.p0Tyd5PL_BXj

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Also see, from bucolic_frolic:

https://www.democraticunderground.com/100221282843
CIA puts senior officials on leave over officer arrested with gold bars
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CIA officer David Rush, who was found with $40 million of gold bars in his home, created a fake spy program to funnel federal money to himself, said two US officials. He has been charged with getting pay by making a false claim he was a Navy reservist. Gift link: www.nytimes.com/2026/06/06/u...

C.I.A. Officer Found With Gold Bars Said to Have Created Fake Spy Program
www.nytimes.com
2:53 PM · Jun 6, 2026
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CIA officer David Rush, who was found with million of gold bars in his home, created a fake spy program to funnel federal money to himself, said two US officials. He has been charged with getting pay by making a false claim he was a Navy reservist. Gift link: www.nytimes.com/2026/06/06/u...

— Edward Wong (@ewong.bsky.social) 2026-06-06T18:53:52.381Z