U.S. Soldier Charged with Using Classified Information for $400K Betting Profit on Maduro Capture

A U.S. Army Special Forces soldier, Gannon Ken Van Dyke, has been charged with using classified information to profit over $400,000 through bets on the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro.

Van Dyke, 38, participated in the planning and execution of the January operation to apprehend Maduro. Prosecutors allege that between December 26, 2025, and January 2, 2026, he placed 13 bets totaling approximately $33,000 on the prediction market site Polymarket, wagering that Maduro would be out of power by January 31, 2026.

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has filed a parallel complaint against Van Dyke, marking the first time the agency has invoked the "Eddie Murphy Rule" to address insider trading using government information.

Van Dyke faces multiple federal charges, including unlawful use of confidential government information for personal gain, theft of nonpublic government information, commodities fraud, wire fraud, and making an unlawful monetary transaction. If convicted, he could face significant prison time.

Polymarket stated that it identified the suspicious trading activity, alerted the Department of Justice, and cooperated with the investigation. The company emphasized that "insider trading has no place on Polymarket."

This case has intensified scrutiny of prediction markets and the potential misuse of classified information for personal financial gain.