US Army Green Beret Arrested for Allegedly Betting on Venezuela Raid

The US Department of Justice has arrested a serving Army Master Sergeant, Gannon Ken Van Dyke, for allegedly using classified information to place wagers on a military operation in Venezuela. The operation aimed to apprehend former Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro. Van Dyke, who is part of the US Army Special Forces, allegedly used his knowledge of the impending raid to place $33,000 in bets on the outcome, resulting in winnings of approximately $400,000. The US Attorney's office has charged Van Dyke with unlawfully using confidential government information for personal gain, theft of non-public government information, and fraud. According to the indictment, Van Dyke created a Polymarket account in late December 2025 and placed 13 bets between then and early January 2026 on the likelihood of US forces landing in Venezuela, removing Maduro, and other related events. The US Commodity Futures Trading Commission is also pursuing an insider trading complaint against Van Dyke. The agency's Chairman, Mike Selig, stated that Van Dyke's actions endangered US national security and put the lives of American service members at risk. Following the raid, Van Dyke allegedly withdrew his winnings, converted them to a stablecoin, and transferred the funds to a foreign cryptocurrency vault before moving them to a brokerage account. The investigation into Van Dyke's activities was prompted by reports of a user making significant profits on Polymarket bets related to the Venezuela raid. Van Dyke is accused of attempting to conceal his identity by asking Polymarket to delete his account and changing his email address. US President Donald Trump has commented on the allegations, expressing his disapproval of the use of confidential information for betting purposes.