Federal authorities arrested and charged a U.S. special forces soldier for allegedly making bets on the raid that removed Venezuela's Nicolás Maduro from office.
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The soldier was identified as Gannon Ken Van Dyke in a news release announcing the indictment.
Van Dyke “bet a total of approximately $33,034” on the Maduro operation on the prediction market platform Polymarket, federal authorities said. He ultimately made more than $409,000 as a result of the bets placed on the U.S. operation, an unsealed indictment alleges.
Authorities said he “participated in the planning and execution of the U.S. military operation to capture Nicolás Maduro.”
“In total, Van Dyke made approximately 13 bets from Dec. 27, 2025, through the evening of Jan. 26,” the Justice Department said.
Van Dyke was criminally charged with “unlawful use of confidential government information for personal gain, theft of nonpublic government information, commodities fraud, wire fraud, and making an unlawful monetary transaction.”
“The charges arise from an alleged scheme in which Van Dyke used sensitive classified information to make wagers on Polymarket,” the statement from the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York said.
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission, which regulates Polymarket, said it was also hitting Van Dyke with civil charges.
The agency saidit "seeks restitution, disgorgement, civil monetary penalties, trading and registration bans, and a permanent injunction against further violations of the Commodity Exchange Act and CFTC regulations."
Source: Drudge Report
