US Army Green Beret Arrested for Allegedly Betting on Venezuela Raid

The US Department of Justice has arrested a senior Army official for allegedly using classified information to place wagers on a military operation in Venezuela. Master Sergeant Gannon Ken Van Dyke is accused of using his knowledge of the forthcoming raid to place $33,000 in bets, resulting in winnings of around $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 against Van Dyke. The accused is an active-duty soldier with the US Army Special Forces and was involved in the planning and execution of the military operation to detain former Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro. After the raid, Van Dyke allegedly withdrew his winnings, converted them to a cryptocurrency, and moved them into a brokerage account. The investigation was prompted by news organizations noticing the large profit made on the Polymarket bets, and Van Dyke's subsequent attempts to conceal his identity. The US President has commented on the allegations, stating that he would look into claims of federal reporters placing prediction market bets using confidential information.