U.S. soldier pleads not guilty to charges of gambling on Maduro raid


A U.S. special forces soldier involved in the military operation that led to former Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro’s capture has pleaded not guilty to charges alleging he used classified information about the mission to bet on Maduro’s removal from office — and win.

Gannon Ken Van Dyke, 38, entered the not guilty plea Tuesday in federal court in New York. He has been charged with unlawful use of confidential government information for personal gain, theft of nonpublic government information, commodities fraud, wire fraud and making an unlawful monetary transaction.

Van Dyke is accused of winning more than $400,000 on the prediction market Polymarket after allegedly betting that Maduro would be removed from office before news of the raid to capture him was made public. Federal investigators believe Van Dyke, a U.S. Army master sergeant, bet more than $33,000 on Polymarket within hours of President Trump’s January announcement that Maduro had been captured, sources told CBS News when the soldier was taken into custody earlier this month.

The case comes during heavy scrutiny on prediction markets, which allow people to trade or wager on almost anything, as policymakers call for stricter regulation of the platforms amid concerns about insider trading.

Days later, Polymarket announced a new partnership with the blockchain data platform Chainalysis to increase transparency in its marketplace, by using tools to monitor trading activity and trace it to individual players. The company said it hoped to convey the message that “insider trading, in addition to all types of fraud and market manipulation, is not welcome on Polymarket, and those who attempt it will be identified.”

The Trump administration has been supportive of the prediction market industry’s expansion. The president’s eldest son is an adviser for both Polymarket and its main competitor, Kalshi, and he is a Polymarket investor. Mr. Trump’s social media platform, Truth Social, is launching its own prediction market called Truth Predict.

Prediction Markets Maduro

Gannon Ken Van Dyke walks with his attorneys near a federal court building in New York on Tuesday, April 28, 2026.

Seth Wenig / AP


Prosecutors said Van Dyke was involved in the planning and execution of Maduro’s capture and had signed nondisclosure agreements centered on the operations, but he eventually placed a series of bets related to Maduro being out of power by Jan. 31.

Polymarket, one of the largest prediction markets, flagged the suspicious activity and turned it over to the government, according to CEO Shayne Coplan.

U.S. Attorney in the Southern District of New York Jay Clayton characterized Van Dyke’s alleged actions as “clear insider trading” in a news release after his arrest.  

“Prediction markets are not a haven for using misappropriated confidential or classified information for personal gain,” Clayton said. “The defendant allegedly violated the trust placed in him by the United States Government by using classified information about a sensitive military operation to place bets on the timing and outcome of that very operation, all to turn a profit.”

Van Dyke, who is stationed at Fort Bragg near Fayetteville, North Carolina, was granted bond after a court hearing in North Carolina last week and will continue his case in New York. He was represented in court by attorney Zach Intrater.



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