A United States Army Special Forces soldier has been accused of using classified information from a covert operation to place bets on an online prediction market tied to the capture of Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro.
Federal prosecutors say Master Sgt. Gannon Ken Van Dyke, who was stationed at Fort Bragg in North Carolina, made more than $400,000 by trading on Polymarket after gaining access to sensitive details about the mission.
According to the indictment filed in Manhattan federal court, he was involved in planning and executing the operation and went on to place about 13 bets linked to its outcome and timing.
Investigators allege the trading happened shortly before Maduro and his wife were seized in Caracas, and that Van Dyke continued betting up to the eve of the operation.
The charges include fraud and unlawful use of government information.
Authorities also say he tried to hide the money trail after the operation, moving funds into cryptocurrency accounts and attempting to delete his trading activity.
The case is now being seen as one of the most high-profile examples of alleged misuse of classified military information for personal gain on prediction markets, an area that has drawn growing scrutiny from U.S. lawmakers and regulators.
