US Arrests Green Beret for Allegedly Betting on Venezuela Raid

The US Department of Justice has arrested a senior Army official for allegedly using classified information to place bets on a military operation in Venezuela. Master Sergeant Gannon Ken Van Dyke, an active-duty member of the US Army Special Forces, is accused of using his knowledge of the forthcoming raid to place $33,000 in bets on Polymarket, winning approximately $400,000. The DOJ 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 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 in federal court. Van Dyke 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 concerns about the use of confidential information for betting purposes.