Brad Senkiw
• News Editor
16+ years betting experience
Updated:
Apr 23, 2026 , 09:45 PM ET
• 4 min read
U.S. Army service member Gannon Ken Van Dyke alleged to have used inside information to make more than $400,000 on Polymarket trading on the removal of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro.
Photo By – Reuters Connect.
A U.S. Army service member involved in the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has been arrested for allegedly using inside information to make more than $400,000 on prediction markets.
Key Takeaways
- Gannon Ken Van Dyke has been charged with the unlawful use of confidential information.
- U.S. prosecutors are seeking restitution, fines, and bans.
- President Trump says he has “never been in favor” of prediction markets.
The Department of Justice and the federal regulatory agency Commodity Futures Trading Commission announced on Thursday that Gannon Ken Van Dyke was indicted on charges of unlawful use of confidential information for personal gain and the theft of nonpublic government information, as well as commodities and wire fraud.
Van Dyke, who was in on the planning and execution of the capture, is accused of purchasing $33,000 worth of “yes” contracts on the prediction market platform Polymarket’s “Maduro Out by January 31, 2026.”
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Seeking restitution
According to the unsealed indictment, the 436,000 shares were bought between Dec. 30, 2025, and Jan. 2, just days before President Donald Trump announced the success of “Operation Absolute Resolve.”
Van Dyke allegedly profited more than $404,000 when Polymarket closed the market and paid out. Federal prosecutors are seeking restitution, disgorgement, civil monetary penalties, trading and registration bans, and a permanent injunction against further violations of the Commodity Exchange Act and CFTC regulations.
“I have been crystal clear that anyone who engages in fraud, manipulation, or insider trading in any of our markets will face the full force of the law,” CFTC Chairman Michael Selig said. “The defendant was entrusted with confidential information about U.S. operations and yet took action that endangered U.S. national security and put the lives of American service members in harm’s way.”
Evoking the rule
Director of Enforcement David Miller said this marks the first time that the CFTC has brought charges against an individual for insider trading of an event contract.
It’s also the first time that the agency has evoked the “Eddie Murphy Rule,” which prohibits individuals from using misappropriated government information to trade commodities.
“The Division will continue to be vigilant in policing the illegal use of inside information in the prediction markets and other markets within the CFTC’s jurisdiction,” Miller said. “As Chairman Selig and I have made clear, we will not tolerate insider trading in our markets, period.”
President speaks
Prediction markets like Polymarket and Kalshi have come under fire in recent months because of insider trading. Kalshi suspended three politicians this week for purchasing event contracts on their own races, and the President made comments about prediction market news on Thursday.
“The whole world, unfortunately, has become somewhat of a casino,” Trump said when he was asked about prediction markets on Thursday. “You look at what’s going on all over the world in Europe and every place they’re doing these betting things – I was never much in favor of it. I don’t like it conceptually, but it is what it is. I’m not happy with any of that stuff. They have all these different sites. They have predictive markets. It’s a crazy world.”
NEWS: Pres. Trump says he “was never much in favor of” prediction markets. pic.twitter.com/GurAug74fM
— Gambling is Not Investing (@EndBackdoorBets) April 23, 2026
Since it became public that Polymarket user Burdensome-Mix profited from inside knowledge on Maduro, several lawmakers have called for bans on public officials and other government employees from using nonpublic information for profit.