Former FBI agent pleads guilty to stealing $2.47M in crypto

What happened

Patrick Steven Yaroch, 37, of Ashburn, Virginia, pleaded guilty to wire fraud and money laundering in federal court in Alexandria, the Justice Department said. Prosecutors said the former FBI agent used cryptocurrency wallet credentials that the bureau had gathered during investigations to steal about $2.47 million. The department disclosed the plea on Nov. 5, according to CryptoSlate. Yaroch faces up to 20 years in prison and is scheduled to be sentenced on March 4, 2027, the reports said.

Yaroch worked in the FBI's Boston Division from 2017 until early 2025 on a squad investigating an unnamed adversarial nation state, then moved to the bureau's Counterintelligence and Espionage Division. There, prosecutors said, he could access FBI systems that stored crypto credentials collected in investigations. Starting no later than December 2024, he used that access to carry out about 100 fraudulent transfers tied to 35 separate investigations. The wallets included ones controlled by subjects of other investigations, by nation-state actors and at least one the FBI had created for an operation, according to the reports. He converted portions of the stolen funds into other cryptocurrencies and layered additional transactions to obscure where the money came from.

Prosecutors said Yaroch used some proceeds to pay credit cards, car payments and other loans while preparing to start a new life abroad. He asked ChatGPT how to maximize investment profits and where to live in the European Union; after the chatbot suggested buying a vineyard in Portugal, he gave Portuguese lawyers power of attorney to obtain a tax identification number, the reports said. He also arranged to travel to Portugal in September. Yaroch turned himself in after telling a former colleague at the Justice Department's National Security Division in July that he had made poor decisions involving crypto wallets, according to an FBI affidavit. He then reported to FBI headquarters and said frustration with the bureau's handling of an adversary's crypto accounts led him to act, the affidavit said. His initial account described far fewer transfers and a smaller amount than the plea.

Why it matters

The case points to a serious internal security failure at the FBI. An agent with access to sensitive investigative material, including wallet credentials, turned that access into personal profit, according to prosecutors. They said the thefts compromised multiple investigations into criminal groups and nation-state adversaries, as well as sources and methods used in foreign intelligence collection. The Justice Department said the conduct interfered with the bureau's ability to protect public safety and national security. The episode also raises questions about how the FBI stores and controls cryptocurrency credentials collected during cases, and how quickly suspicious access is detected.

What the data shows

The reported figures cover the whole scheme rather than a single wallet. Prosecutors put the total stolen at about $2.47 million across roughly 100 transfers and 35 investigations. Decrypt reported that his Kraken account held about $188,600, mostly U.S. dollars and the USDC stablecoin, with smaller amounts in Squid and Bitcoin. A further $933,800 sat in Suilend, a lending protocol on the Sui blockchain, which he accessed through the Slush wallet app. Agents transferred about $925,000 from those accounts to government-controlled wallets, while about $165,600 held as U.S. dollars on Kraken could not be moved the same way, according to the affidavit. CryptoSlate reported that between November 2025 and January 2026, Yaroch moved about $93,082 into an account and used funds moved between his accounts to cover debts.

Background

Yaroch's FBI work began in Boston, where he investigated threats tied to a foreign adversary, according to CryptoSlate. He later joined the Counterintelligence and Espionage Division. Decrypt reported in August on the charges against him. When agents searched his home two days after he came forward, they seized a Trezor hardware wallet, three passports and a piece of paper with seed phrases, according to the affidavit. CryptoSlate reported that the FBI terminated his employment on July 31 and that investigators recovered about $925,426 in cryptocurrency from accounts he controlled that day. An additional $165,582 remained in dollars at Kraken, the affidavit said.

What is still unclear

Prosecutors did not identify the affected countries or the specific investigations harmed by the thefts, leaving the full extent of the intelligence damage undisclosed. The reports also do not detail all destinations of the stolen funds or every security control that failed. It remains unclear whether additional wallets or cases are under review.

What to watch

Yaroch's sentencing is set for March 4, 2027. Further court filings could shed light on the investigations affected, the recovery of assets and any additional reviews inside the FBI. The case is likely to draw scrutiny to how law enforcement agencies safeguard crypto credentials and other sensitive digital evidence.

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