Former FBI agent Patrick Steven Yaroch pleaded guilty to wire fraud and money laundering after admitting he stole cryptocurrency using credentials available through FBI systems. From December 2024 onward, Yaroch carried out about 100 fraudulent transfers tied to 35 separate FBI investigations, generating approximately $2.47 million in illicit proceeds. The scheme involved wallets linked to investigation subjects, adversarial nation-state actors and at least one wallet created by the FBI for an operation, highlighting broader crypto security risks.
After moving the cryptocurrency, Yaroch exchanged it into other digital assets and conducted additional transactions intended to obscure its source, ownership and nature. Between November 2025 and January 2026, he transferred about $93,082 into one of his accounts and later moved funds between accounts to pay credit cards, car payments and other debts. His actions also compromised FBI investigative methods and operations.
Yaroch is scheduled to be sentenced on March 4, 2027, after U.S. District Judge Patricia Tolliver Giles accepted his guilty plea. He faces a statutory maximum of 20 years in prison, although the final sentence will be determined under federal sentencing guidelines and other factors. The case now moves to sentencing, while the admitted conduct illustrates the risks posed when access to sensitive crypto credentials is abused.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice.
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