US special forces soldier charged with using classified intel for Maduro removal bet

A US special forces soldier involved in the military operation to capture former Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro has been charged with using classified information about the mission to win more than US$400,000 in an online betting market, federal officials announced on Thursday.

Gannon Ken Van Dyke was part of the operation to capture Maduro in January and used his access to classified information to make money on the prediction market site Polymarket, the federal prosecutor’s office in New York said.

He has been charged by the Justice Department with unlawful use of confidential government information for personal gain, theft of non-public government information, commodities fraud, wire fraud and making an unlawful monetary transaction. He could face years in prison.

Van Dyke, 38, was involved in the planning and execution of capturing Maduro for about a month beginning December 8, 2025, according to the federal prosecutor’s office.

Even though he signed non-disclosure agreements promising to not divulge “any classified or sensitive information” related to the operations, prosecutors say the US Army soldier used this information to make a series of bets related to Maduro being out of power by January 31, 2026.

“This involved a US soldier who allegedly took advantage of his position to profit off of a righteous military operation,” FBI Director Kash Patel said in a post to social media.