A Google employee allegedly used insider information to win $1.2 million on Polymarket

Federal prosecutors have charged a Google employee with fraud after allegedly making $1.2 million on a Polymarket bet related to events in 2025, as was previously reported by ABC News. In their unpublished complaintprosecutors say Michele Spagnuolo “knew the results of these bets before the business community did because he had access to Google’s internal secrets.” Spagnuolo was arrested in New York on Wednesday but was released on a $2.25 million bond, ABC News reports. He is accused of corruption, wire fraud, and money laundering.

Spagnuolo bet on Polymarket under the name AlphaRacoon, his successful hunting bets attracted the attention of sales like Forbes and social media users December is over. At one point, Spagnuolo correctly assumed that a singer called D4vd “will be the #1 person searched on Google” in 2025, despite the “closest chance” offered by Polymarket, according to the complaint.

At the same time, Spagnuolo reportedly bet that Pope Leo XIV and Kendrick Lamar would not appear on Google. “Year in Search 2025” serieswhich is difficult to predict because of the way it is calculated. Google says so it posted last year’s statement based on those who saw “traffic growth” — not search volume — between January 1, 2025 and November 25, 2025. “By measuring interest rate instead of search rate, we can identify what happened in 2025.”

“After winning, Spagnuolo deliberately attempted to conceal his illegal use of non-public information in an attempt to conceal the source and ownership of his illegal funds,” he said. Last month, prosecutors indicted US Army veteran Gannon Ken Van Dyke for alleged fraud. $400,000 Polymarket bet on the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro.

In information on XPolymarket called itself a “compulsory leader,” saying that the “reliable construction market” reflected Spagnuolo’s work. “Blockchain trading is transparent, traceable, and bad actors leave footprints,” the company wrote, not realizing if people put their money down they know.

“We are working with law enforcement authorities in their investigation,” Google spokeswoman Jaclyn Vazquez said in a statement. Seaside. “The employee obtained our promotional material using a tool available to all employees, but using such confidential information for betting is a serious violation of our policy.