Former FBI agent accused of stealing $1 million in crypto from Russian suspect

A former FBI agent has been charged in the US with stealing around $1 million in cryptocurrency from a Russian national who was the subject of an investigation, according to The Jerusalem Post.

Patrick Steven Yaroch worked in the FBI’s national security and counterintelligence divisions. In late 2024, he reportedly became frustrated that the bureau had not frozen the suspect’s cryptocurrency accounts.

Yaroch accessed wallet information through restricted FBI databases and memorized the seed phrases. He then created a personal account and transferred the funds in roughly 10 to 12 transactions.

The former agent mixed the stolen cryptocurrency with his own savings and placed some of the funds on the Suilend platform. According to investigators, he chose the service simply because he liked its water-drop logo.

In late July 2026, Yaroch confessed during an in-person meeting with a Justice Department employee, saying the guilt was “eating him up inside.”

A search of his property uncovered a hardware wallet and a piece of paper containing passwords. Investigators also found that Yaroch had asked ChatGPT how to spend $1 million and move to the European Union.

His phone contained details of a planned trip to Portugal, while investigators also discovered documents authorizing local lawyers to obtain a Portuguese tax identification number on his behalf.

The FBI fired Yaroch on July 31 and arrested him at his home the same day. Authorities have since recovered most of the stolen cryptocurrency and transferred it to government-controlled accounts.