US Arrests Army Green Beret Over Alleged $400,000 Bet on Venezuela Raid

The US Department of Justice has arrested a master sergeant in the Army, alleging that he used classified information about a military operation in Venezuela to place bets worth $33,000, resulting in winnings of approximately $400,000. The sergeant, Gannon Ken Van Dyke, is accused of 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 December 2025 and placed 13 bets between December 26, 2025, and January 2, 2026, on contracts related to the potential US military action in Venezuela. The US Commodity Futures Trading Commission is also pursuing an insider trading complaint against Van Dyke. The case has drawn attention to the potential risks of using confidential information for personal gain, with US Attorney Jay Clayton stating that Van Dyke's actions constituted 'clear insider trading' and were 'illegal under federal law.' Van Dyke, an active-duty soldier with the US Army Special Forces, was involved in the planning and execution of the military operation to detain Maduro. After the raid, Van Dyke allegedly withdrew his winnings, converted them to a cryptocurrency, and transferred the funds to a brokerage account. The investigation into Van Dyke's activities was initiated after news organizations noticed that someone had made a significant profit on Polymarket bets related to the Venezuela raid. Van Dyke allegedly attempted to conceal his identity by asking Polymarket to delete his account and changing his email address. In response to the allegations, Polymarket stated that it had cooperated with the DOJ investigation and referred the matter to the authorities. The case has also drawn comment from US President Donald Trump, who expressed his disapproval of the use of confidential information for betting purposes, stating that 'the whole world has become somewhat of a casino.'