The U.S. Department of Justice ordered the arrest of a Special Forces soldier from the Army after discovering he used top-secret information about the operation to capture Nicolás Maduro, former leader of Venezuela, to place bets on a crypto betting platform, earning over $400,000 before the official announcement.
The U.S. Department of Justice announced the arrest and indictment of Staff Sergeant Gannon Ken Van Dyke, an active-duty Special Forces soldier at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, on charges of using classified government information to gain personal profit through online gambling.
The indictment states that Van Dyke, part of the planning and execution team of "Absolute Resolve," the operation to capture Nicolás Maduro, used undisclosed information to place bets on Polymarket, a cryptocurrency-based global event prediction platform, earning more than $409,000 (approximately 13.29 million baht).
Prosecutors said that starting December 8, 2025, Van Dyke was closely involved in planning Maduro's capture. On December 26, he opened a Polymarket account and began betting over $33,000 on topics related to the Venezuelan leader's fate and the military operation's outcomes.
On January 3, 2026, U.S. forces raided and detained Maduro and his wife at the presidential palace in Caracas, then transferred him for prosecution in New York. Van Dyke’s prior knowledge of the schedule and outcome allowed him to win large bets.
Polymarket issued a statement on social media saying, "When we detected users trading based on government insider information, we immediately informed the Department of Justice and fully cooperated with the investigation. Insider trading has no place on our platform."
Acting U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche said, "Our soldiers are trusted with classified information to ensure mission safety. Using highly sensitive information for personal gain is unacceptable and clearly violates federal law."
Meanwhile, President Donald Trump commented on the incident, expressing discomfort with global event prediction gambling systems: "Unfortunately, the whole world has become like a casino, whether in Europe or elsewhere, with this kind of gambling happening. I've never supported such things."
Currently, Van Dyke faces multiple serious charges including misuse of classified government information for personal gain, theft of government data, commodity and telecommunications fraud, and illegal financial transactions.
Van Dyke had previously signed a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) prohibiting the disclosure or use of military operation information in any form. If convicted, he could face decades in prison.