TLDR
- Former FBI agent Patrick Yaroch pleaded guilty to wire fraud and money laundering over $2.47 million in stolen crypto.
- He took funds from at least 79 wallets linked to 35 FBI investigations.
- He asked ChatGPT where to live in the EU and planned to buy a Portuguese vineyard.
- He must pay at least $2.4 million in restitution and forfeit about 1.38 million SUI.
- Sentencing is set for March 4, 2027, with up to 20 years per count.
Patrick Steven Yaroch, a former FBI agent, pleaded guilty on Thursday to wire fraud and money laundering. The charges stem from the theft of about $2.47 million in cryptocurrency. The US Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia announced the plea.
EX-FBI AGENT PLEADS GUILTY TO STEALING $2.47 MILLION IN CRYPTO FROM INVESTIGATIONS
Patrick Steven Yaroch, 37, of Ashburn, Virginia, pleaded guilty to wire fraud and money laundering in federal court in Alexandria after using FBI-held wallet credentials from 35 investigations to… pic.twitter.com/wxXiVnh1Os
— Bitcoin News (@BitcoinNewsCom) November 7, 2026
Yaroch is 37 and lives in Ashburn, Virginia. Each count carries up to 20 years in prison. A judge will sentence him on March 4, 2027.
How the Thefts Worked
Court documents say Yaroch began searching FBI databases no later than December 2024. Some of those databases were classified. He looked for crypto credentials tied to open cases.
He used what he found to make about 100 transfers. The money came from at least 79 wallets linked to 35 FBI investigations. Most wallets belonged to people under investigation.
Two of the wallets were controlled by adversarial nation states. The filing does not name them. NBC News reported in August that one of them was Russia, citing two sources.
Yaroch also took money from at least 10 wallets that belonged to crime victims. He took funds from one wallet the FBI had funded for an operation. The filing calls him “indiscriminate.”
Individual thefts ranged from 81 cents to more than $580,000. After each theft, he checked FBI systems to see if anyone had noticed.
Yaroch joined the FBI’s Boston Division in 2017. From February 2025 to July 31, 2026, he was a supervisory special agent in the Counterintelligence and Espionage Division at FBI headquarters.
Debts, ChatGPT and a Vineyard
Before the thefts, Yaroch had taken out more than $100,000 in loans in 2024. He also owed more than $45,000 on credit cards. Prosecutors say he used the stolen funds to pay down debts.
In one case, he used credentials from a case file on Nov. 6, 2025, to empty two wallets into his own bitcoin wallet. He then ran the funds through a swap service with privacy features. He converted some into Monero and then Solana, and moved them through a Sui wallet to a Kraken account.
From Nov. 25, 2025, to Jan. 13, 2026, he moved about $93,082 to a TD Bank account. About $30,176 went to credit cards and $20,000 went toward a Lexus.
On June 4, Yaroch asked ChatGPT what it would do with about $1 million if it wanted to move to a European Union country. The chatbot mentioned his wife and child and his interest in a 2-5 hectare estate and “age-worthy red wine.” It named Portugal as its top choice.
On June 15, he gave two Portuguese lawyers power of attorney to register him with the country’s tax authority. He also arranged a September trip tied to buying a vineyard.
Plea Terms and Earlier Charges
Under the plea deal, Yaroch must pay at least $2.4 million in restitution. He also faces a forfeiture judgment of at least $2.4 million. He agreed to give up 17,990.67 USDC and about 1.38 million SUI seized on July 31, worth roughly $1.2 million.
He will also forfeit the contents of his TD Bank, Charles Schwab, Kraken and BloFin accounts. He acknowledged that the full proceeds “are not available.” He agreed to be interviewed by Justice Department and FBI officials.
Any money he earns from books, films, articles or interviews about his case will go to the US government. He must also send such work to the FBI for review before publication.
The Block reported in August that the FBI fired Yaroch on July 31. He was charged then with transporting and receiving stolen money. The Justice Department’s Office of the Inspector General said he had reported himself to two department employees on July 29.
Prosecutors asked to keep him jailed before trial. They cited about $160,000 still on Kraken and possible Espionage Act charges that were never filed. Judge Anthony Trenga instead released him on a $50,000 bond with location monitoring.
Separately, a federal grand jury indicted John Daghita on 15 counts in March over the alleged theft of more than $46 million in crypto from the US Marshals Service. His arraignment is set for Nov. 12 in Alexandria.
