Gold’s status as a universally desirable precious metal is in the spotlight after a CIA officer was arrested for diverting $40 million in gold bars to a fake top-secret intelligence program that he created. David Rush is charged with theft of public funds after investigators discovered 303 gold bars in his basement, along with $2 million in cash. Prosecutors say Rush exploited the spy agency’s secrecy precautions to accumulate the gold for an ultrasecret “special access program.”
What appears to have made the alleged plot plausible is the fact that U.S. intelligence agencies and their operatives have historically relied upon physical gold for secret payments, bribes, and support for allies.
During World War II, the Office of Strategic Services used gold bars and coins to bribe enemy officials, secure safe houses in occupied territories, and fund the French Resistance. In case they were shot down behind enemy lines, WWII U.S. fighter pilots were equipped with escape and evasion barter kits that included gold coins that could be traded for food and shelter.
During the Cold War, the CIA often used gold coins to purchase intelligence, pay local spies, and support underground political action groups.
And, as the David Rush scandal indicates, the CIA continues to utilize gold for so-called “black budget operations,” which are concealed from public and legislative view, for intelligence gathering and covert operations such as gaining foreign political influence, counterterrorism missions, and secret paramilitary activities.
