An FBI intelligence officer with "top secret" clearance has been detained for allegedly misappropriating cryptocurrency from agency investigations.
By Jesse Hamilton|Edited by Nikhilesh De Aug 3, 2026, 10:17 p.m. 2 min readMake preferred on ShareShare this articleCopy linkX (Twitter)LinkedInFacebookEmailMake preferred on A senior FBI agent has been arrested for allegedly stealing around $1 million in cryptocurrency. (Jesse Hamilton/CoinDesk)SummaryShow- A counterintelligence agent at the FBI, who held a "top secret" clearance, reportedly confessed to colleagues about taking approximately $1 million in cryptocurrency from wallets linked to investigations by the agency.
- This agent, who was stationed at the FBI headquarters in Washington, was dismissed and subsequently arrested, as detailed in court documents.
A senior FBI agent specializing in intelligence at the national headquarters has been arrested on charges of stealing over $1 million in cryptocurrency.
Patrick Steven Yarmoch, the agent in question, allegedly admitted to fellow agents that he had extracted crypto keys from FBI systems to execute multiple transfers to his own accounts from wallets associated with foreign entities under investigation, as indicated in a federal court document filed on August 1 in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia.
Yarmoch, who possessed a "top secret" security clearance, had been working in counterintelligence, particularly with a unit focused on an unspecified "adversary nation." According to the court filing, he faced a brief suspension before being terminated and arrested on July 31.
Residing in Ashburn, Virginia, Yarmoch served as a supervisory special agent at the FBI headquarters, specifically within the counterintelligence and espionage division. He had previously spent years in Boston, where he was part of a national security unit investigating the same adversary nation mentioned in the court filings.
In managing the digital assets, Yarmoch reportedly utilized accounts on Kraken and Suilend, a decentralized finance (DeFi) platform associated with the Sui blockchain, through a Slush wallet.
Investigators discovered inquiries on his computer and phone records, including a question posed to AI applications: "If you had a bucket of money (around $1 million) and you wanted to leave the USA and become a resident or citizen of an EU country, what would you do?" The AI supposedly suggested Portugal as a desirable location.
Authorities also found travel arrangements for Yarmoch and his family to visit Portugal next month, along with unreported trips to Germany, Portugal, and Grenada, which violated FBI protocols.
Yarmoch is currently in custody in Alexandria, Virginia.
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