US Army Green Beret Arrested for Allegedly Betting on Venezuela Raid

The US Department of Justice has arrested a master sergeant in the Army, accusing him of misusing classified information for personal gain by placing bets on a military operation in Venezuela. Gannon Ken Van Dyke allegedly used his knowledge of the impending raid to place $33,000 in bets on Polymarket, ultimately winning approximately $400,000. According to the indictment, Van Dyke created a Polymarket account in late December 2025 and made 13 bets between then and early January 2026, speculating on the outcome of the US military operation in Venezuela. The US Commodity Futures Trading Commission is also pursuing an insider trading complaint against Van Dyke. As an active-duty soldier with the US Army Special Forces, Van Dyke was involved in planning and executing the operation to detain former Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro. After the raid, Van Dyke allegedly attempted to conceal his winnings and identity by withdrawing funds, converting them to a cryptocurrency, and transferring them to a brokerage account. The incident has drawn attention to the use of classified information for personal gain and the risks associated with prediction markets. US President Donald Trump has expressed concerns about the use of confidential information for betting, stating that the world has become 'somewhat of a casino' and that he does not favor the concept of such betting.