US prosecutors have reached a tentative plea agreement with former CIA official David Rush, who was found with more than $40 million (£30 million) worth of gold bars at his Virginia home, a court filing has said.
The Justice Department and Mr Rush’s lawyer have asked a federal district court in Virginia to extend the deadline for filing an indictment until October 8, saying they had made “significant progress” towards resolving the case before trial.
They said: “A pre-indictment resolution promotes the public interest by conserving government and judicial resources.”
The filing did not state which charges Mr Rush might admit. Prosecutors said an indictment and trial could involve extensive arguments over classified material, based on the evidence gathered so far.
Gold bars and cash found in Virginia home
A criminal complaint filed in May charged Mr Rush with one count of stealing public money through alleged timesheet fraud.
The FBI said agents found 303 gold bars, $2 million in cash and 35 luxury watches during a search of his home. Many of the watches were said to be Rolexes.
Investigators also alleged that Mr Rush gave false information about his education and military service on a government application. The complaint claimed he fraudulently took military leave after his service had ended.
According to the allegations, Mr Rush recorded 744 hours of military leave on an official timesheet after being honourably discharged from the Navy in 2015. The claimed leave amounted to about $77,000 in compensation.
The FBI further alleged that Mr Rush had made repeated requests to the government for large quantities of foreign currency and tens of millions of dollars in gold bars for work-related expenses. His employer was unable to identify “the intended use of these funds”, the complaint said.
A federal judge ordered Mr Rush to remain in custody in June, ruling that he posed a severe flight risk.
