Securities Regulation Daily Wrap Up, ENFORCEMENT—S.D.N.Y.: DOJ, CFTC charge U.S. soldier with insider trading on Maduro capture, (Apr 24, 2026)
Organizations Mentioned:U.S. Army
The defendant allegedly made more than $400,000 by trading on information gained in his military role.
The CFTC and Department of Justice have charged U.S. Army soldier Gannon Ken Van Dyke with using classified information to trade on the Polymarket prediction marketplace regarding a U.S. military operation to capture former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. The bets paid off when the U.S. apprehended Maduro in the predawn hours of January 3, 2026.
If convicted, Van Dyke faces a maximum sentence of 60 years in prison.
“Prediction markets are not a haven for using misappropriated confidential or classified information for personal gain,” said U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton for the Southern District of New York.
“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,” said CFTC Chairman Michael Selig.
The case marks the first time the CFTC has charged insider trading involving event contracts, as well as the first time the CFTC has used the “Eddie Murphy Rule” regarding misuse of government information.
Alleged insider trading. The CFTC and DOJ alleged that Van Dyke, an active-duty U.S. Army soldier, placed approximately $33,034 in 13 Polymarket trades on the January capture of Maduro in “Operation Absolute Resolve” based on classified information he accessed in his military role.
The alleged trades all took the YES position under Van Dyke’s Polymarket handle “Burdensome-Mix.”
“U.S. Forces in Venezuela … by January 31, 2026”;
“Maduro out by … January 31, 2026”;
“Will the U.S. invade Venezuela by … January 31,”;
“Trump invokes War Powers against Venezuela by... January 31.”
Van Dyke allegedly profited approximately $409,881 from the trades.
Van Dyke allegedly took steps to conceal his identity, including immediately transferring most of the proceeds to a foreign cryptocurrency vault and then to a new online brokerage account, and falsely telling Polymarket he had lost access to his email account.
Charges. The CFTC charged Van Dyke with violating the Commodity Exchange Act (CEA) and CFTC regulations (CFTC v. Van Dyke, No. 1:26-cv-03369 (S.D.N.Y. Apr. 23, 2026).
Section 6(c)(1) and Regulation 180.1(a)(1), (3) (prohibiting manipulation and false information);
Section 4c(a)(3) (prohibiting government employees from trading on confidential government information);
Section 4c(a)(4)(C) (prohibiting theft of confidential government information).
The CFTC seeks disgorgement, restitution, and a civil monetary penalty along with an injunction and trading ban.
The DOJ charged Van Dyke with three counts of violating the CEA, each of which carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison; one count of wire fraud, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison; and one count of an unlawful monetary transaction, which carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison (U.S. v. Van Dyke, No. 26 CR 156 (S.D.N.Y. unsealed Apr. 23, 2026).
Congressional pressure on CFTC. Lawmakers have cited Maduro trades in repeatedly urging the CFTC to act on prediction market trades on other U.S. military operations.
Pointing to suspiciously well-timed Maduro trades, a group of 12 senators asked Selig in a January letter to “do more” to police insider trading in prediction markets.
In a letter in March, Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn) and Rep. Angie Craig (D-Minn), ranking members of the Senate and House Agriculture committees, also cited the Maduro trades in asking the CFTC to circulate executive branch guidance explaining that federal employees must refrain from insider trading in prediction markets. The letter was also signed by Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass), Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Calif), and 38 other lawmakers.
In an April letter, seven members of Congress demanded to know why the CFTC is allowing event contract trading on war at all.
“It is morally corrupt and completely unacceptable for these platforms to allow people to bet on whether American service members live or die,” said Rep. Seth Moulton (D-Mass). “This is not a game. The CFTC has the authority to stop this, and we want to know why it hasn’t.”
These are case Nos. 1:26-cv-03369 (CFTC v. Van Dyke) and 26 CR 156 (U.S. v. Van Dyke).
MainStory: TopStory CommodityFutures Derivatives Enforcement ExchangesMarketRegulation FraudManipulation Swaps NewYorkNews