Ex-FBI Agent Pleads Guilty in $2.47 Million Cryptocurrency Theft

Patrick Steven Yaroch, a 37-year-old former FBI counterintelligence agent, pleaded guilty in Alexandria federal court to fraud and money laundering over the diversion of $2,474,380.66 in cryptocurrency, Cointribune reported. The case involved digital wallets and credentials connected to federal investigations, turning law-enforcement access into the mechanism for an internal theft. Bitcoinist reported that Yaroch exploited his access to FBI systems to obtain cryptocurrency wallet credentials and transfer assets from wallets linked to federal cases. Cointribune said the credentials were seized across 35 investigations. Those details place the alleged conduct at the intersection of federal evidence handling, wallet security and the transfer of digital assets into wallets controlled by the former agent. Both outlets corroborate the central facts: Yaroch admitted the theft, and the amount involved was approximately $2.47 million. They do not contradict each other on the value or the guilty plea. Their main distinction is terminology: Bitcoinist describes the fraud charge as wire fraud, whereas Cointribune refers to electronic fraud; both list money laundering as the second offense. The reported amount is nearly $2.5 million, but no specific listed coin was identified as the asset taken. The supplied reports also do not detail whether any stolen funds have been recovered, whether the assets remain traceable on public blockchains, or what restitution or forfeiture terms accompany the guilty plea. The broader crypto market was flat at the time of the brief, with total capitalization at $2.61 trillion. Bitcoin was up 0.39% over 24 hours, while the Fear & Greed index stood at 28, indicating a “Fear” reading. The market data provides context rather than a direct connection to the theft: the reported loss was tied to wallets and federal systems, not to an identified coin market movement.