“Shall we bet that I capture Maduro?”, the US soldier wins 400 thousand dollars and is arrested: the case

Van Dyke, an active duty soldier in the United States Army stationed at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, won more than $409,000 from his bets. According to what was declared by the US Department of Justice, Van Dyke would have bet on the timing and outcome of the operation, known as Operation Absolute Resolve, “for the sole purpose of profiting”.

Federal prosecutors allege that from December 8, 2025, through at least January 6, 2026, Van Dyke was involved in the planning and execution of Operation Absolute Resolve and had access to sensitive, non-public, classified information about that operation. The Justice Department alleges that on or about December 26, 2025, Van Dyke created an account on Polymarket and began trading on markets linked to Maduro and Venezuela. He is accused of placing bets for over 33 thousand dollars by exploiting the possession of confidential and non-public information regarding Operation Absolute Resolve.

In a statement posted on social media yesterday, Polymarket said: “When we identified a user trading using classified government information, we reported the matter to the Department of Justice and cooperated with their investigation.” The firm added: “Insider trading has no place on Polymarket. Today’s arrest proves that the system works.”

Van Dyke was charged with unlawful use of classified government information for personal gain, theft of non-public government information, securities fraud, wire fraud and unlawful monetary transaction, according to the indictment.

“Our men and women in uniform are entrusted with handling classified information in order to carry out their mission as safely and effectively as possible, and they are prohibited from using this highly sensitive information for personal financial gain,” said Acting U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche.