A U.S. special forces officer involved in the military operation to capture Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro has been charged with using classified information to profit from an online betting market, federal officials announced Thursday. Gannon Ken Van Dyke, 38, allegedly leveraged his insider knowledge to win more than $400,000 on the prediction platform Polymarket.
Charges and Allegations
Van Dyke faces charges including unlawful use of confidential government information, theft of nonpublic government information, commodities fraud, wire fraud, and making an unlawful monetary transaction. According to prosecutors, Van Dyke participated in the planning and execution of Maduro’s capture beginning December 8, 2025. Despite signing nondisclosure agreements, he allegedly used classified details to place bets predicting Maduro’s removal from power by January 31, 2026.
This involved a U.S. soldier who allegedly took advantage of his position to profit off of a righteous military operation,
said FBI Director Kash Patel in a statement. Van Dyke’s actions reportedly endangered U.S. national security and compromised the safety of American service members.
Investigation and Profits
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) filed a parallel complaint, alleging Van Dyke transferred $35,000 into a cryptocurrency account on December 26, 2025, just days before the operation. He placed the majority of his bets on January 2, hours before the mission commenced. Van Dyke’s wagers reportedly netted him over $404,000 in profits, with additional gains from three other Venezuela-related contracts.
Shortly after the operation, Van Dyke allegedly moved most of the funds into a foreign cryptocurrency vault and requested Polymarket to delete his account, claiming he lost access to his email. Polymarket, which cooperated with the Justice Department’s investigation, stated that insider trading has no place on its platform.
Broader Implications
The case has sparked bipartisan calls for stricter regulation of prediction markets, where users can bet on global events. CFTC Chairman Michael Selig emphasized the severity of Van Dyke’s actions, stating they undermined national security and jeopardized the lives of U.S. service members.