U.S. Soldier Charged Over Betting on Maduro Capture Using Classified Intelligence
A U.S. Army special forces soldier has been charged with using classified military intelligence to place bets on the capture of Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro through the prediction platform Polymarket, U.S. authorities said.
Federal prosecutors identified the suspect as Master Sgt. Gannon Ken Van Dyke, who allegedly used insider knowledge from a covert January 2026 operation—one he was directly involved in—to wager on outcomes tied to Maduro’s removal from power.
According to investigators, Van Dyke placed multiple bets between late December 2025 and early January 2026, earning more than $400,000 after correctly predicting the outcome of the mission.
He now faces several charges, including wire fraud, commodities fraud, theft of government information, and unlawful use of confidential data for personal gain.
Prosecutors say the soldier had access to sensitive, non-public intelligence during the planning and execution of the operation and violated strict non-disclosure obligations by exploiting that information for profit.
Authorities also allege he attempted to conceal his activities by transferring funds through cryptocurrency accounts and deleting traces of his betting activity.
The case is believed to be the first criminal prosecution involving insider trading on a prediction market, raising broader concerns about the potential misuse of classified or privileged information on emerging digital betting platforms.
