US Special Forces sergeant accused of using classified intel to bet on Maduro’s removal
A US Army Special Forces master sergeant has been charged with using confidential government information to place online bets tied to a covert operation to remove Venezuela’s President Nicolás Maduro, allegedly cashing out more than $400,000 (£296,000), according to an indictment unsealed last week.
Prosecutors allege Gannon Ken Van Dyke, based at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, signed non-disclosure agreements for classified operations and helped plan and execute the military effort that led to Maduro’s seizure in early January.
The federal filing says that between 27 December and 2 January he bought about $33,934 worth of contracts on Polymarket predicting when US forces would go into Venezuela and when Maduro would be unseated, among other outcomes.
Van Dyke faces charges of 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 is due to be arraigned in a New York federal courthouse on Tuesday, US media report.
In a separate civil case brought by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, he is also accused of insider trading. According to the indictment, Van Dyke has served on active duty since 2008 and became a master sergeant with the US Army Special Forces in 2023.
He signed a non-disclosure agreement in September 2018 acknowledging the US government’s “special confidence and trust” and pledging not to divulge anything marked sensitive, or even that he knew such information.
The filing does not detail his day-to-day duties or his exact role in the Maduro operation, which it says included air strikes, a network of on-the-ground spies and a significant military presence built up over months in the region. Outside the military, Van Dyke built a real estate portfolio, listing himself on LinkedIn as owner of Better Homes NC LLC, registered in 2022.
On social media he describes himself as a Fayetteville, North Carolina-based investor and father, and in a post on a property forum he wrote that he owned five properties and was looking to add two or three more. He also ran an Airbnb mountain retreat called Daddy Bear Cave, where guests rated him a “superhost” and praised his responsiveness.
Public records show he purchased a $340,000, three-bedroom, 2,400-sq-ft (223-sq-m) home exactly 20 days after Maduro’s capture. His wife has frequently posted property listings and tenant calls online under the Better Homes brand and with Coldwell Banker Advantage.
The criminal case and the CFTC lawsuit proceed in parallel. The indictment’s allegations remain to be tested in court, and further details of Van Dyke’s alleged role have not been set out in the public filings so far.