A US special forces soldier involved in the military operation that captured Nicolas Maduro has been arrested after he allegedly bet on the removal of Venezuela's former leader before the information was publicly available.
The US Department of Justice (DOJ) has charged Gannon Ken Van Dyke after he allegedly made trades on Polymarket, a crypto-powered platform, on the basis of classified information.
That is clear insider trading and is illegal under federal law, justice department officials said.
Van Dyke, an active-duty soldier in the US Army stationed at Fort Bragg in North Carolina, won more than $409,000 (£303,702) as a result of his bets.
US forces seized Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, from their compound in Caracas in a dramatic, night-time raid on 3 January, and brought them to New York to face allegations of weapon and drug offenses, which they deny.
Van Dyke allegedly placed bets on the timing and outcome of the operation, known as Operation Absolute Resolve, all to turn a profit, the DOJ stated.
The DOJ alleges that on or about 26 December 2025, Van Dyke created a Polymarket account and began trading on Maduro and Venezuela-related markets. He is accused of making bets of more than $33,000 while in possession of classified nonpublic information about Operation Absolute Resolve.
In a statement posted on social media on Thursday, Polymarket said: When we identified a user trading on classified government information, we referred the matter to the DOJ & cooperated with their investigation. The company added: Insider trading has no place on Polymarket. Today's arrest is proof the system works.
Van Dyke has been 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, according to an indictment unsealed on Thursday.
Our men and women in uniform are trusted with classified information in order to accomplish their mission as safely and effectively as possible, and are prohibited from using this highly sensitive information for personal financial gain said acting US Attorney General Todd Blanche.
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), an independent US federal agency, also filed a complaint against Van Dyke accusing him of engaging in insider trading.
The case will proceed in the Southern District of New York, where US Attorney Jay Clayton emphasized that prediction markets are not a haven for misappropriating confidential information for personal gain.
The US Department of Justice (DOJ) has charged Gannon Ken Van Dyke after he allegedly made trades on Polymarket, a crypto-powered platform, on the basis of classified information.
That is clear insider trading and is illegal under federal law, justice department officials said.
Van Dyke, an active-duty soldier in the US Army stationed at Fort Bragg in North Carolina, won more than $409,000 (£303,702) as a result of his bets.
US forces seized Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, from their compound in Caracas in a dramatic, night-time raid on 3 January, and brought them to New York to face allegations of weapon and drug offenses, which they deny.
Van Dyke allegedly placed bets on the timing and outcome of the operation, known as Operation Absolute Resolve, all to turn a profit, the DOJ stated.
The DOJ alleges that on or about 26 December 2025, Van Dyke created a Polymarket account and began trading on Maduro and Venezuela-related markets. He is accused of making bets of more than $33,000 while in possession of classified nonpublic information about Operation Absolute Resolve.
In a statement posted on social media on Thursday, Polymarket said: When we identified a user trading on classified government information, we referred the matter to the DOJ & cooperated with their investigation. The company added: Insider trading has no place on Polymarket. Today's arrest is proof the system works.
Van Dyke has been 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, according to an indictment unsealed on Thursday.
Our men and women in uniform are trusted with classified information in order to accomplish their mission as safely and effectively as possible, and are prohibited from using this highly sensitive information for personal financial gain said acting US Attorney General Todd Blanche.
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), an independent US federal agency, also filed a complaint against Van Dyke accusing him of engaging in insider trading.
The case will proceed in the Southern District of New York, where US Attorney Jay Clayton emphasized that prediction markets are not a haven for misappropriating confidential information for personal gain.
