US Special Forces Soldier Charged for Betting on Maduro Raid Using Classified Information
A US special forces soldier involved in the January 2026 operation to capture Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has been formally charged with using classified information to place bets on an online prediction market.
Gannon Ken Van Dyke, aged 38, used his access to sensitive details about the mission to win more than $400,000 on the prediction market site Polymarket, according to federal prosecutors in New York.
Van Dyke faces multiple federal charges including unlawful use of confidential government information for personal gain, theft of non-public government information, commodities fraud, wire fraud, and making an unlawful monetary transaction.
He was involved in the planning and execution of the operation from early December 2025 and placed bets predicting Maduro would be out of power by January 31, 2026.
Despite signing non-disclosure agreements prohibiting the sharing of classified information, prosecutors say Van Dyke used this information to make a series of bets between December 30, 2025, and January 2, 2026, with most bets placed just hours before the operation began.
The FBI director stated that the soldier allegedly exploited his position to profit from a legitimate military operation.
Polymarket detected the suspicious trading activity linked to classified information, alerted US authorities, and cooperated fully with the investigation, condemning insider trading on its platform.
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), which regulates prediction markets, has filed a parallel complaint against Van Dyke.
The complaint notes that he transferred $35,000 from his personal bank account to a cryptocurrency exchange shortly before the raid and used over $32,500 to place bets on Maduro's removal from power.
This case highlights concerns over the misuse of classified military information for personal financial gain during sensitive international operations.
It remains unclear what the timeline for the legal proceedings will be and what penalties Van Dyke may face if convicted.
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