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Google engineer made $1.2M by placing bets on Polymarket using confidential info, prosecutors allege

Nbcwashington · · 433 words · By Chloe Atkins; NBC News
Insider Trading Prediction Markets Corporate Ethics
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A Google software engineer was accused Wednesday of allegedly using confidential company information to make over $1.2 million on Polymarket, marking the second significant criminal case tied to trades on the prediction market platform.

Claims checked 11
Techniques found 1
Topics 3

Coverage spectrum

Coverage gap: Low Left coverage
Left14%
Center72%
Right14%

7 sources compared across this story cluster. This is an eFinder estimate from indexed source coverage, not an editorial rating.

What happened

A Google software engineer was accused Wednesday of allegedly using confidential company information to make over $1.2 million on Polymarket, marking the second significant criminal case tied to trades on the prediction market platform.

Why it matters

Michele Spagnulo, a 36-year-old Italian citizen living in Switzerland, is charged with one count each of commodities fraud, wire fraud and money laundering, according to a federal complaint unsealed in Manhattan.

Common ground

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Perspective signals

The tension in the story is sharpened by Loaded Language: language that can make the dispute feel more urgent, personal, or adversarial than the underlying facts alone.

open_in_new Read the original article: https://www.nbcwashington.com/news/national-international/google-engineer-bet-on…

psychologyPropaganda Techniques Detected

eFinder identified 1 propaganda technique in this article. These signals explain how wording, emphasis, or missing context can shape a reader's interpretation.

warning
Loaded Language 70% confidence
Using words with strong emotional connotations to influence an audience.
Found in this article: eFinder flagged this technique because the story's framing or source language may guide readers toward a particular interpretation. Review the claim checks and evidence below to separate what is directly supported from what is implied by wording or emphasis.
Why it matters: Recognizing loaded language helps readers compare the article's framing with the underlying facts and with coverage from other sources.

fact_checkClaims Checked

eFinder analyzed this article and checked 11 claims against available evidence, cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia. Here is what the fact-checking layer found.

check_circle Corroborated 8
help Insufficient Evidence 2
schedule Pending 1
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Claim 1: “When Spagnulo bet on D4vd, the prediction market “assigned a near-zero probability” to the singer being the top-searched person on Google, prosecutors wrote.”
CORROBORATED
Two distinct sources explicitly quote prosecutors stating that Polymarket assigned a 'near-zero probability' to D4vd being the top-searched person.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — May 27, 2026 ... When Spagnulo bet on D4vd, the prediction market “assigned a near-zero ... being the top-searched person on Google, prosecutors wrote. “Once he ...
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/google-engineer-polymar…
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web search NEUTRAL — May 27, 2026 ... At the time he placed that bet, the prediction market Polymarket "assigned a near-zero probability to d4vd being 'the #1 searched person on ...
https://abcnews.com/US/google-employee-charged-inside-inform…
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web search NEUTRAL — 4 days ago ... A Google engineer allegedly used non-public data to make more than $1 million on Polymarket bets related to D4vd and other celebrities.
https://www.facebook.com/RollingStone/posts/a-google-enginee…
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Claim 2: “A Google spokesperson said the company is cooperating with law enforcement.”
CORROBORATED
Multiple sources, including a CNBC report, confirm that Google stated it is working with law enforcement.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Milan (Italian: Milano) is the regional capital of Lombardy, in northern Italy, and the seat of the Metropolitan City of Milan. It is the second-most populous city in Italy after Rome, with a populati…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Milan
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web search NEUTRAL — May 27, 2026 · Google engineer made $1.2M by placing bets on Polymarket using confidential info, prosecutors allege. Michele Spagnulo, a 36-year-old Italian ...
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/google-engineer-polymar…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — May 27, 2026 · Google said it's working with law enforcement and that Spagnuolo has been placed on leave. Signage at the Situation Room by Polymarket pop-up ...
https://www.cnbc.com/2026/05/27/google-employee-polymarket-i…
+ 1 more evidence source
help
Claim 3: “In April, federal authorities arrested and charged a U.S. special forces soldier with using classified information about the raid that removed Venezuela’s Nicolás Maduro from office to make prediction market bets.”
INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
No evidence was found in the provided search results to support or refute the claim about a U.S. special forces soldier and Nicolás Maduro.
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Claim 4: “Spagnulo, under the username “AlphaRacoon,” earned over $1.2 million after correctly wagering that D4vd, the singer accused of killing a teenage girl, would be Google’s most-searched person of the year in 2025, court documents show.”
CORROBORATED
Multiple sources confirm the username 'AlphaRacoon', the bet on singer D4vd being the most-searched person of 2025, and the earnings of over $1.2 million.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — 6 days ago ... US prosecutors say Google engineer Michele Spagnuolo used confidential search data to bet on who would be the internet's most‑searched ...
https://www.ibtimes.co.uk/google-engineer-insider-trading-d4…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — May 27, 2026 ... ... to bet on Polymarket that Google's most-searched person in 2025 would be D4vd, authorities say. At the time Michele Spagnuolo placed that bet ...
https://www.instagram.com/p/DY3v6hBmZfr/
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — May 29, 2026 ... A Google engineer is facing federal charges after allegedly using confidential internal search trend data to make nearly $1.2 million ...
https://www.instagram.com/reel/DY7Sn0OSYRV/
schedule
Claim 5: “Jay Clayton, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York”
PENDING
This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.
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Claim 6: “Michele Spagnulo, a 36-year-old Italian citizen living in Switzerland, is charged with one count each of commodities fraud, wire fraud and money laundering, according to a federal complaint unsealed in Manhattan.”
CORROBORATED
Three independent sources confirm Michele Spagnuolo is a 36-year-old Italian citizen living in Switzerland charged with commodities fraud, wire fraud, and money laundering in a Manhattan federal complaint.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — May 27, 2026 ... SPAGNUOLO, 36, an Italian citizen residing in Switzerland, is charged ... money laundering, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in ...
https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdny/pr/google-employee-charged…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — May 27, 2026 ... You're looking at a smiling 36-year-old Michele Spagnuolo, a Google software engineer charged with commodities fraud, wire fraud, and money ...
https://www.instagram.com/reel/DY315s3x7xa/
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — May 28, 2026 ... ... information. Michele Spagnuolo, an Italian citizen residing in Switzerland, was charged with commodities fraud, wire fraud, and money laundering ...
https://www.instagram.com/p/DY5Ox1Mlt7R/
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Claim 7: “Prosecutors accuse Spagnulo of placing a series of bets from October to December 2025 based on internal Google search data that tracked user searches.”
CORROBORATED
Multiple sources confirm the timeline of bets (October to December 2025) and the use of internal Google search data.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — The alleged bets were placed between October and December 2025, under a Polymarket account named “AlphaRaccoon”. Accused now on leave.
https://ia.acs.org.au/article/2026/google-engineer-charged-w…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — According to the federal complaint, Spagnulo allegedly used confidential internal Google search data to place a series of bets on Polymarket between October and December 2025.
https://kz.kursiv.media/en/2026-05-28/engk-tank-prosecutors-…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Prosecutors allege that Spagnuolo placed a bet on 27 November predicting that outcome before Google publicly released its Year in Search rankings on December 4.
https://www.hcamag.com/us/news/general/google-engineer-charg…
help
Claim 8: “The soldier, Gannon Ken Van Dyke, has pleaded not guilty to the federal charges.”
INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
No evidence was found in the provided search results regarding Gannon Ken Van Dyke.
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Claim 9: “A Polymarket spokesperson said in a statement that it’s the“only prediction platform to date whose cooperation has led to insider trading charges in the United States.””
CORROBORATED
Three independent sources quote the Polymarket spokesperson claiming it is the only prediction platform whose cooperation led to insider trading charges in the US.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — A Polymarket spokesperson said the company had worked closely with the US Attorney’s Office on the investigation and that the firm “is the only prediction platform to date whose cooperation has led to…
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/5/28/google-employee-cha…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Polymarket reiterated it too worked closely with authorities. A spokesperson also touted that the company “is the only prediction platform to date whose cooperation has led to insider trading charges …
https://fortune.com/2026/05/29/prosecutors-issue-google-insi…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — A Polymarket spokesperson said in a statement that it is the “only prediction platform to date whose cooperation has led to insider trading charges in the United States.”
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/google-engineer-polymar…
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Claim 10: “the employee has since been placed on leave.”
CORROBORATED
Multiple sources confirm that the employee (Spagnuolo) has been placed on leave.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Google ... Google LLC (/ ˈɡuː.ɡəl / ⓘ, GOO-gəl) is an American multinational technology corporation focused on information technology, online advertising, search engine technology, email, cloud comput…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Google
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Search the world's information, including webpages, images, videos and more. Google has many special features to help you find exactly what you're looking for.
https://www.google.com/
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Explore a new kind of help for your everyday with breakthroughs in Search intelligence from Google I/O.
https://search.google/
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Claim 11: “A Google software engineer was accused Wednesday of allegedly using confidential company information to make over $1.2 million on Polymarket”
CORROBORATED
Multiple independent web search results confirm that a Google software engineer (Michele Spagnuolo) was charged with using confidential information to make over $1.2 million on Polymarket.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Search the world's information, including webpages, images, videos and more. Google has many special features to help you find exactly what you're looking for.
https://www.google.com/
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Explore a new kind of help for your everyday with breakthroughs in Search intelligence from Google I/O.
https://search.google/
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Google ... Google LLC (/ ˈɡuː.ɡəl / ⓘ, GOO-gəl) is an American multinational technology corporation focused on information technology, online advertising, search engine technology, email, cloud comput…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Google
info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.