FBI agent faces crypto theft charges after alleged $1 million transfers

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FBI agent crypto theft charges

Highlights

FBI supervisory special agent Patrick Yaroch is arrested and charged after allegedly stealing about $1 million in cryptocurrency from adversarial accounts via a dozen transfers since late 2024.
Court documents reveal Yaroch admitted to using found digital wallet keys for theft, mixing personal and crypto funds, and seeking guidance from ChatGPT on handling the stolen assets.
The FBI fired Yaroch on July 31 after he allegedly purchased a ticket to Portugal departing Sept. 3, which prosecutors cite as context for the theft investigation.

Affidavit details alleged transfers and admissions

As reported by The Block, citing court documents, Patrick Yaroch is arrested Friday after allegedly admitting he stole cryptocurrency from what the affidavit describes as adversarial cryptocurrency accounts. An affidavit filed Aug. 1 says he discovered keys that let him transfer funds from digital wallets to himself and told investigators he carried out about a dozen transfers beginning in late 2024 or early 2025.

Investigators say Yaroch told a Department of Justice employee that he made very poor decisions related to cryptocurrency wallets. In a separate interview with federal agents, he also allegedly said he had "f**ked up."

Yaroch worked as a supervisory special agent in the FBI headquarters' counterintelligence and espionage division and previously served in the agency's Boston division. The FBI fired him on July 31, and court documents show he is charged with interstate transportation of stolen goods and receipt of stolen goods, securities and money.

ChatGPT use and travel plans add to scrutiny

The affidavit says Yaroch told investigators he mixed his personal and cryptocurrency funds together. It also says the FBI found he relied on ChatGPT for guidance on what to do with the money, including questions about how to spend or invest $1 million and whether to leave the U.S. for a country in Europe.

The same affidavit says he purchased a ticket to Portugal departing Sept. 3, along with a return flight. Prosecutors are framing those details as part of the broader factual record around the alleged theft and handling of the cryptocurrency.

Our earlier report covered the Uttarakhand Bitcoin investment fraud case tied to BTCFUND.IS, in which India’s Enforcement Directorate provisionally attached assets worth Rs 8.54 crore linked to Hemant Ishwar Sharma. Investigators alleged investors were promised high returns, around 856.23 BTC was collected, and proceeds were later laundered through crypto exchanges and used to buy property, vehicles, and fund renovations as the probe continued.

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