US Army Green Beret Arrested for Allegedly Betting on Venezuela Raid

A master sergeant in the US Army has been taken into custody by the Department of Justice for allegedly using classified information to place wagers on a military operation in Venezuela. Gannon Ken Van Dyke is accused of unlawfully utilizing confidential government information for personal gain, theft of non-public government information, and fraud. According to the indictment, Van Dyke used his knowledge of the impending raid to place $33,000 in bets, resulting in winnings of approximately $400,000. The US Attorney's office stated that Van Dyke's actions constituted a clear case of insider trading, which is illegal under federal law. Van Dyke allegedly created a Polymarket account in late December 2025 and placed 13 bets between then and early January 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 CFTC Chairman noted that Van Dyke's actions endangered US national security and put the lives of American service members at risk. 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 former Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro. After the raid, Van Dyke allegedly withdrew his winnings, converted them to a cryptocurrency, and transferred the funds to a brokerage account. The indictment also alleges that Van Dyke attempted to conceal his identity by asking Polymarket to delete his account and changing his email address. Polymarket cooperated with the DOJ investigation and referred the matter to them after identifying the suspicious activity. US President Donald Trump commented on the allegations, expressing his disapproval of the use of confidential information for betting purposes.