DOJ arrests soldier who made $400,000 betting on Maduro's removal

A special forces soldier who was involved in the rendition of Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro has been arrested after he allegedly pocketed more than US$400,000 (£296,980) by betting on the now-ousted leader's removal from office. The United States Justice Department announced on Thursday that Gannon Ken Van Dyke bet more than US$ $33,034 (£24,534) on cryptocurrency-based gambling platform Polymarket, pocketing a whopping USD$409,000 (£303,686) of winnings. He placed the bets only hours before US president Donald Trump announced the capture of Nicolás Maduro in a dramatic pre-dawn raid on the then-Venezuelan leader's Caracas home. The bets immediately raised both eyebrows and questions of insider trading, resulting in an investigation lasting months which ended in Van Dyke being indicted on charges that included unlawful use of confidential information for personal gain, theft of nonpublic government information, commodities fraud, wire fraud, and unlawful monetary transaction. Shortly after Trump's announcement of "Operation Absolute Resolve", reports of unusual trading on Polymarket regarding Maduro's capture appeared in the press and on social media. The reports spurred Van Dyke to attempt to conceal his identity as the trader behind the dodgy Maduro bets. He requested Polymarket delete his account, falsely claiming that he had lost access to the email address to which the account had been associated. The same day he made that request, Van Dyke changed the email registered to his cryptocurrency exchange account to an email address that was not subscribed to in his name. The indictment reads: "Rather than safeguard that information as he was obligated to do, VAN DYKE decided to use that classified information to place trades on a prediction market platform for his personal profit." "VAN DYKE subsequently tried to conceal his unlawful use of classified US Government information by attempting to obscure the source of his unlawful proceeds and to disguise his connection to the accounts linked to the illicit trades," it continues. A Polymarket spokesperson said the company referred the suspicious bets to the Department of Justice and had cooperated with the investigation from start to finish, as per a statement it shared to social media. "Insider trading has no place on Polymarket. Today's arrest is proof the system works," the statement said. FBI Director Kash Patel said the indictment was a clear message for those with access to privileged information. “Today’s announcement makes clear no one is above the law, and this FBI will do whatever it takes to defend the homeland and safeguard our nation’s secrets," he said. “Any clearance holders thinking of cashing in their access and knowledge for personal gain will be held accountable.” A Polymarket spokesperson said the company referred the suspicious bets to the Department of Justice and cooperated with the investigation, according to a statement posted to X. "Insider trading has no place on Polymarket. Today's arrest is proof the system works," the statement said. According to the USA's ABC News, while Van Dyke's arrest on Thursday marks a first for US authorities, it is not an unprecedented move globally. In February, an Israeli army reservist and civilian were charged in Israel in connection with using classified information to place bets on Polymarket.