FBI Agent Fired Over Alleged Crypto Theft Worth $1 Million
An FBI supervisory agent in Washington, D.C., has been accused of stealing around $1 million in cryptocurrency from digital accounts tied to a suspect in an overseas criminal investigation.
The agent, Patrick Yaroch, allegedly took the money between 2024 and 2025 using passcodes gathered during the FBI's investigation. He reportedly made 10-12 withdrawals from the suspect's accounts, which were obtained through information collected by the FBI.
Yaroch confessed to the alleged crime last week, telling a Department of Justice employee that it was 'eating him up inside' and he wanted to get it off his chest. According to the affidavit, Yaroch's searches on ChatGPT in May showed he asked how to invest or spend $1 million for maximum profit, and in June, he asked what to do with a bucket of money ($1 million) if he wanted to leave the USA and become an EU resident.
The agent has not been charged yet, but the documents list the charge as interstate transfer of stolen goods. His home was searched, and he was arrested over the weekend. The FBI told the outlet that Yaroch has since been fired from the agency and took action as soon as it became aware of the allegations.