A US soldier accused of cashing in on the Nicolas Maduro raid is back in court. The case centers on allegations that he profited from his access to sensitive details about a secret American operation.
Prosecutors have identified the accused as Army Master Sergeant Gannon Van Dyke. They say he used classified information to place bets on the secret US operation to remove the Venezuelan president from power.
According to the case laid out by prosecutors, the betting was tied directly to inside knowledge of the operation. The allegation places the conduct squarely within the handling of classified material.
Investigators say those bets were highly profitable. By their account, the wagers earned Van Dyke more than 400,000 dollars, underscoring the scale of the alleged scheme.
Van Dyke has pleaded not guilty to the charges. His denial sets the stage for a contested case as it moves through the courts.
With the sergeant back in court, the proceedings continue around the allegations that classified information was exploited for financial gain. The case ties together questions of military secrecy, a covert operation abroad and the personal profit prosecutors say followed.