Federal prosecutors announced Thursday the arrest of Gannon Ken Van Dyke, a 38-year-old active-duty U.S. Army soldier assigned to Fort Bragg in Fayetteville, North Carolina. Van Dyke faces multiple charges stemming from an alleged scheme to unlawfully profit from classified intelligence related to a sensitive U.S. military operation. The charges, unsealed in the Southern District of New York, detail Van Dyke's alleged involvement in "Operation Absolute Resolve," a classified mission that culminated in the seizure of Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, from a residence in Caracas, Venezuela, in the early morning hours of January 3, 2026. President Donald Trump publicly announced the capture hours after it occurred.
"Our men and women in uniform are trusted with classified information in order to accomplish their mission as safely and effectively as possible, and are prohibited from using this highly sensitive information for personal financial gain." — Acting U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche.
According to the indictment, Van Dyke was not merely privy to details of the operation but was directly involved in both its planning and execution. His access to classified information about "Operation Absolute Resolve" reportedly began around December 8, 2025, and continued through at least January 6, 2026. This access came with a legal obligation, as Van Dyke had signed nondisclosure agreements explicitly prohibiting him from disclosing any classified or sensitive military information. Prosecutors allege he disregarded these agreements entirely.
The core of the accusation centers on Van Dyke's activities on Polymarket, an online prediction marketplace. Around December 26, 2025, Van Dyke allegedly opened an account on this platform. Polymarket was hosting a series of binary contracts directly linked to political events in Venezuela, including whether U.S. forces would operate inside the country by January 31, 2026, whether Maduro would be removed from power by the same date, if a full U.S. invasion of Venezuela would occur, and if President Trump would invoke war powers against the Maduro government.
Prosecutors contend that Van Dyke possessed foreknowledge of the outcomes of these events, information that was not available to the public. Between December 27, 2025, and the evening of January 2, 2026—less than 24 hours before the Caracas raid—Van Dyke allegedly placed approximately 13 separate bets. These wagers totaled around $33,034, with Van Dyke consistently taking the "YES" position across each of the listed contracts. Following the public disclosure of "Operation Absolute Resolve" and the subsequent resolution of the contracts, the Department of Justice states that Van Dyke collected approximately $409,881 in profits.
The indictment further alleges that Van Dyke took steps to conceal his illicit gains and erase his digital trail. The funds did not remain static for long; prosecutors claim he quickly transferred most of the money into a foreign cryptocurrency vault before moving it again into a newly established online brokerage account. On January 6, 2026, he reportedly contacted Polymarket, requesting the deletion of his account and falsely claiming he no longer had access to the associated email address. Around the same time, he allegedly switched the email linked to his cryptocurrency exchange account to one registered under a different name.
The federal government's investigation ultimately led to Van Dyke's arrest and the sweeping set of charges he now faces. These include unlawful use of confidential government information for personal gain, theft of nonpublic government information, three counts of violating the Commodity Exchange Act, one count of wire fraud, and one count of making an unlawful monetary transaction. The potential penalties for these offenses are significant; convictions on the commodities and monetary transaction counts each carry a maximum sentence of 10 years, while the wire fraud count carries a maximum of 20 years in prison.
Acting U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche addressed the severity of the alleged actions during the announcement. Blanche emphasized the critical trust placed in military personnel, stating, "Our men and women in uniform are trusted with classified information in order to accomplish their mission as safely and effectively as possible, and are prohibited from using this highly sensitive information for personal financial gain." Blanche also signaled the government's intent to address the evolving landscape of online prediction markets, clarifying that "Widespread access to prediction markets is a relatively new phenomenon, but federal laws protecting national security information fully apply." This case underscores the Department of Justice's commitment to prosecuting individuals who exploit their access to sensitive government information, regardless of the platform used for financial gain.
