A U.S. Army special forces soldier, Master Sergeant Gannon Ken Van Dyke, has been charged by the Department of Justice for using classified information to place bets on Polymarket, resulting in over $400,000 in profits related to the removal of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro [1][2].
Van Dyke was involved in the planning and execution of the operation to capture Maduro, which commenced around December 8, 2025, and culminated in Maduro’s capture on January 3, 2026 [1][2]. During this period, Van Dyke placed bets totaling more than $33,000, with the majority of bets occurring on the night of January 2, 2026 [1][2].
The charges against Van Dyke include unlawful use of confidential government information for personal gain, theft of nonpublic government information, commodities fraud, wire fraud, and making an unlawful monetary transaction [1][2]. In addition to the criminal charges, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has filed a parallel civil complaint against him [1][2].
Polymarket, the online prediction market platform where the bets were placed, detected the suspicious trading activity and cooperated with the Department of Justice, referring the matter to federal authorities [1][2]. Van Dyke reportedly transferred most of his winnings into a foreign cryptocurrency vault and then into a new brokerage account, subsequently requesting the deletion of his Polymarket account [1][2].
What Is Known
Van Dyke’s involvement in the military operation and the timing of his bets are confirmed by multiple sources [1][2]. The charges brought by the Department of Justice and the CFTC’s civil complaint are also verified [1][2].
What Remains Unclear
The exact amount of profit Van Dyke made varies slightly across reports, with figures cited as “more than $404,000,” “nearly $410,000,” or “more than $409,000” [1][2][3]. Additionally, the operation’s codename “Operation Absolute Resolve” is mentioned in some reports but not confirmed across all sources [3].
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