C.I.A. Officer Held in Detention After Gold Bars Found at Home

A federal judge ruled that a C.I.A. employee must stay in detention after agents discovered 303 gold bars weighing about one kilogram each at his home along with nearly three dozen luxury watches. The employee, identified in court documents as David Rush, was arrested on May 19.

Prosecutors charged him with theft of public funds, alleging he submitted false time sheets claiming Navy Reserve service after his 2015 discharge from that branch.

Background of the Case U.S. officials said Mr.

Rush created a fake “special access program” that allowed him to request and receive tens of millions of dollars in gold bars and foreign currency between last November and March. When the C.I.A. later checked the location of those assets, the agency could not locate the gold bars or significant amounts of the currency, court documents stated.

Agents also found $2 million in U.S. currency at the residence. The officials did not provide details on how the fake program was used to obtain the funds.

On Friday, Judge William E.

Fitzpatrick of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia ordered continued detention, citing flight risk. Court documents also noted Mr. Rush had previously provided false information to the C.I.A. about his college education. The F.B.I. and C.I.A. said in a joint statement last month that an internal C.I.A. review identified potential legal violations and referred the matter to the F.B.I. Mr.

Rush’s lawyer declined to comment. Some lawmakers have asked the C.I.A. for more information about its employee vetting and oversight of sensitive programs.