A former US government official has been arrested after FBI investigators found hundreds of gold bars worth more than $40 million (£29.6 million) in his Virginia home.

David Rush made several requests to the US government to receive the bars for "work-related expenses" over the past year, according to court documents. He has been charged with criminal theft of public money in a complaint filed last week.

According to the New York Times, Rush held a senior position in the CIA up until recently.

He was arrested and is being held in detention until his hearing this week. His attorney declined to comment.

Agents also uncovered about $2 million (£1.5 million) in US currency in Rush's home, along with 35 luxury watches, many of them Rolexes.

Rush, who court documents say had top secret clearance and access to classified information, has also been accused of lying about his education and military service when applying for his government job, and fraudulently taking military leave with thousands of dollars in pay.

Rush is a former senior executive in a US government agency in Virginia, court documents state.

Asked about Rush's case, the FBI said in a written statement that it arrested an individual on 19 May 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.

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 $40 million, they added.

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

The BBC has contacted the CIA for comment. (BBC)

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