Former FBI Agent Pleads Guilty in $2.47 Million Crypto Theft

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia announced Nov. 5 that former FBI agent Patrick Steven Yaroch pleaded guilty to wire fraud and money laundering involving $2.47 million in crypto theft.

The roughly 100 transfers drew on credentials associated with 35 FBI investigations. Yaroch, 37, had access to FBI systems holding cryptocurrency credentials collected during investigations. The wallets were controlled by investigation subjects or adversarial nation-state actors, and the FBI created at least one wallet for an operation.

He exchanged the stolen crypto for other digital assets and used additional transactions to hide its source and ownership. From Nov. 25, 2025, to Jan. 13, 2026, about $93,082 moved into one of his accounts; he then shifted funds among accounts to pay credit-card bills, car payments and loans.

Yaroch authorized Portuguese lawyers on June 15, 2026, to manage his tax registration and secure a Portuguese tax identification number. He later arranged travel to Portugal in September. His conduct compromised multiple FBI investigations and sources and methods used in intelligence collection and criminal investigations. The guilty plea was accepted by U.S. District Judge Patricia Tolliver Giles. Yaroch faces up to 20 years in prison, with sentencing set for March 4, 2027.