U.S. special forces soldier pleads not guilty to using classified information to win big on prediction market

A U.S. special forces soldier pleaded not guilty Tuesday to charges that he used classified information about the mission to capture former Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro to win more than $400,000 US on the prediction market Polymarket.

Gannon Ken Van Dyke, 38, entered the plea in Manhattan federal court after he was charged with the unlawful use of confidential government information for personal gain, theft of nonpublic government information, commodities fraud, wire fraud and making an unlawful monetary transaction.

He was released on $250,000 US bail and his travel was restricted to portions of New York, North Carolina, California and points necessary to travel between.

Prosecutors said evidence in the case will include information resulting from grand jury subpoenas, cryptocurrency exchange records, search warrants and social media accounts.

Defence attorney Zach Intrater told Judge Margaret M. Garnett he doubts there will be many disputes arising from “the actual event,” but suspects the case will rise and fall on motions he will make on behalf of his client.

The judge ordered Van Dyke to return to court on June 8 for a pretrial conference.

The case comes during heavy scrutiny of 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.

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. Trump’s social media platform, Truth Social, is launching its own prediction market called Truth Predict.

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

According to a criminal complaint, the bets totaling $33,000 US were placed over a three-day period and resulted in “more than $404,000 [US] of profits.”

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

Van Dyke, who is stationed at Fort Bragg near Fayetteville, N.C., was granted bond after a court hearing in North Carolina last week and will continue his case in New York.