US Army Green Beret Arrested for Placing Bets on Venezuela Raid

The US Department of Justice has arrested a master sergeant in the US Army for allegedly using classified information to place bets on a military operation in Venezuela. The sergeant, Gannon Ken Van Dyke, is accused of using his knowledge of the forthcoming raid to place $33,000 in bets, which resulted in winnings of approximately $400,000. According to the indictment, Van Dyke created a Polymarket account and placed 13 bets on contracts related to the raid, including whether US forces would land in Venezuela and remove President Nicolas Maduro. The US Commodity Futures Trading Commission is also pursuing an insider trading complaint against Van Dyke, who is an active-duty soldier with the US Army Special Forces. The case has sparked concerns about the use of confidential government information for personal gain and the potential risks to national security. Van Dyke allegedly attempted to conceal his identity by asking Polymarket to delete his account and changing his email address. The incident has also drawn attention to the use of prediction markets and the potential for insider trading. US President Donald Trump has commented on the issue, expressing his disapproval of the practice of using confidential information for betting purposes.