Army soldier involved in Maduro capture arrested for allegedly using classified intel to win $410K in bets

A U.S. Army worker progressive successful the daring cognition and seizure of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro has been arrested connected charges of allegedly utilizing classified accusation to spot a stake connected the deposed leader's removal from bureau — a determination that won him much than $400,000, authorities said.

Gannon Ken Van Dyke, 38, allegedly wagered much than $33,000 connected Polymarket, an online prediction marketplace wherever bettors tin wage wealth connected everything from sports matches and economical indicators to governmental outcomes, the Justice Department said Thursday.

He is charged with 3 counts of violating the Commodity Exchange Act, 1 number of ligament fraud, and 1 number of an unlawful monetary transaction. Van Dyke besides faces insider trading charges by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).

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Former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro successful handcuffs aft landing connected a New York City helipad. A U.S. Army worker progressive successful the subject cognition to apprehension the deposed person has been charged with utilizing classified accusation to spot bets connected Maduro's capture.  (Fox News)

"Today’s announcement makes wide nary 1 is supra the law, and this FBI volition bash immoderate it takes to support the homeland and safeguard our nation’s secrets," FBI Director Kash Patel said. "Any clearance holders reasoning of cashing successful their entree and cognition for idiosyncratic summation volition beryllium held accountable."

The bets netted Van Dyke astir $410,000. In total, helium made 13 bets from Dec. 27, 2025, done the evening of Jan. 2 — conscionable hours earlier the cognition to seizure Maduro commenced.

Van Dyke allegedly sent astir of his winnings to a overseas cryptocurrency vault earlier depositing them into a recently created online brokerage account, national prosecutors said.

In a Thursday station connected X, Polymarket noted that it published enhanced rules successful March to combat insider trading.

"When we identified a idiosyncratic trading connected classified authorities information, we referred the substance to the DOJ & cooperated with their investigation," the station states. "Insider trading has nary spot connected Polymarket. Today's apprehension is impervious the strategy works."

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Venezuelan person Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, are seen successful handcuffs aft landing connected a New York City helipad, escorted by national agents arsenic they caput to a national courthouse successful Manhattan connected Jan. 5, 2026. (XNY/Star Max/GC Images)

Van Dyke, who was stationed astatine Fort Bragg, North Carolina, had signed nondisclosure agreements successful which helium promised to "never divulge, publish, oregon uncover by writing, words, conduct, oregon otherwise... immoderate classified oregon delicate information" relating to subject operations, according to the DOJ.

Beginning astir Dec. 8, 2025, done Jan. 6, Van Dyke was progressive successful the readying and execution of "Operation Absolute Resolve," the subject ngo to seizure Maduro, whom national prosecutors allege leads a cause cartel.

Amid the plans for the operation, Van Dyke had accordant entree to classified intelligence.

"Our men and women successful azygous are trusted with classified accusation successful bid to execute their ngo arsenic safely and efficaciously arsenic possible, and are prohibited from utilizing this highly delicate accusation for idiosyncratic fiscal gain," Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said. "Widespread entree to prediction markets is simply a comparatively caller phenomenon, but national laws protecting nationalist information accusation afloat apply."

Around Dec. 26, 2025, Van Dyke allegedly created a Polymarket account, funded it, and began trading connected Venezuela-related markets.

Some of those contracts tracked the likelihood of U.S. forces entering Venezuela by definite dates, the probability of Maduro being removed from power, and the likelihood of President Donald Trump invoking the War Powers Act against Venezuela, the DOJ said.

On the time of the operation, Van Dyke allegedly withdrew the bulk of his winnings.

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To debar being caught, helium allegedly asked Polymarket to delete his account, falsely claiming helium had mislaid entree to his registered email address.

That aforesaid day, helium changed the email registered to his cryptocurrency speech relationship to an code that was not successful his name, which helium had created astir Dec. 14, 2025.

In summation to the transgression charges against him, Van Dyke is the taxable of a ailment by the CFTC arsenic portion of a parallel probe into his alleged actions.

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"I person been crystal wide that anyone who engages successful fraud, manipulation, oregon insider trading in immoderate of our markets volition look the afloat unit of the law," CFTC Chairman Michael Selig said.  "The suspect was entrusted with confidential accusation astir U.S. operations and yet took enactment that endangered U.S. nationalist information and enactment the lives of American work members successful harm’s way."

Fox News Digital has reached retired to Polymarket and the DOJ for comment. The War Department referred each questions to national prosecutors.

Van Dyke faces up to 60 years successful prison.