In brief
Gannon Ken Van Dyke, a 38-year-old soldier stationed at Fort Bragg, has been charged with multiple counts including commodities fraud and wire fraud. Prosecutors allege that he used classified information to place bets on the future of Maduro's regime, resulting in significant profits. Following a raid in January, public inquiries and regulatory scrutiny of prediction markets have heightened.
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — A U.S. Army special forces soldier involved in the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro is set to appear in court after being charged with using classified information to profit over $400,000 on an online prediction market.
Federal prosecutors have accused Gannon Ken Van Dyke of leveraging his access to sensitive details surrounding the January operation to make lucrative bets on the prediction market site Polymarket.
Charged with multiple offenses including the unlawful use of nonpublic government information and commodities fraud, Van Dyke faces a potential lengthy prison sentence. His attempts to connect with legal representation have so far been unsuccessful, as a listed phone number is no longer in service.
According to prosecutors, Van Dyke was privy to insider information related to the operation for about a month and signed non-disclosure agreements to protect classified details. However, he allegedly wagered on Maduro being out of power by January 31, 2026, while he continued to act on this information.
FBI Director Kash Patel highlighted that the case involves a soldier taking advantage of their position during a significant military operation, further stating that his actions endangered U.S. national security.
In a parallel action, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission has filed a complaint against Van Dyke, revealing allegations that he transferred $35,000 to a cryptocurrency exchange just before the operation commenced. The bets were made just hours before U.S. forces began their operation in Caracas, resulting in significant profits shortly thereafter.
Following the substantial profits from these insider bets, there have been bipartisan calls for stricter regulations surrounding online prediction markets, which have gained attention in light of this ongoing investigation.
