US Army Green Beret Arrested for Allegedly Betting on Venezuela Raid

The US Department of Justice has arrested a master sergeant in the Army for allegedly using confidential information to place bets on a military operation in Venezuela. Gannon Ken Van Dyke, an active-duty soldier with the US Army Special Forces, is accused of using his knowledge of the forthcoming raid to place $33,000 in bets, resulting in winnings of approximately $400,000. According to the indictment, Van Dyke created a Polymarket account and placed 13 bets between December 26, 2025, and January 2, 2026, on contracts related to the US military operation in Venezuela. The US Commodity Futures Trading Commission is also pursuing an insider trading complaint against Van Dyke. The defendant allegedly attempted to conceal his identity by asking Polymarket to delete his account and changing his email address. The case has drawn attention from US President Donald Trump, who expressed his disapproval of betting using confidential information, stating that the world has become 'a casino' and that he does not conceptually like the idea of such betting activities.