U.S. soldier Gannon Ken Van Dyke has been accused of trading on Polymarket with nonpublic information tied to an event contract about Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro being removed from office in January, generating more than $400,000 in profit. U.S. authorities brought fraud charges against him in April. The Commodity Futures Trading Commission had already filed a civil case, but a federal judge paused that matter until the criminal case is resolved. The agency has since sought to file an amicus brief addressing whether the event contracts at issue fall within its jurisdiction as swaps and related defenses. Van Dyke’s lawyer pushed back in a filing submitted Monday to the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, arguing that the CFTC should deal with its own case rather than step into the criminal proceeding. Van Dyke has pleaded not guilty to all charges, and the criminal trial may begin as early as late 2026 or early 2027.
U.S. soldier Gannon Ken Van Dyke is accused of using nonpublic information to trade Polymarket event contracts tied to Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro being removed from office in January, making more than $400,000 in profit.
U.S. authorities charged Van Dyke with fraud in April. Before that, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, or CFTC, had filed a civil lawsuit against him. A federal judge has since ruled that the civil matter will be paused until the outcome of the criminal case is known.
The CFTC later asked to submit an amicus brief, saying it wanted to address arguments over whether the event contracts fall within the agency’s regulatory scope as swaps. In a filing submitted Monday to the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, Van Dyke’s lawyer objected to the CFTC entering the criminal case and said the agency should face its own case directly.
Van Dyke has pleaded not guilty to all charges. His criminal trial could begin as early as late 2026 or early 2027.
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