- Google engineer made $1.2 million on Polymarket utilizing delicate search knowledge as AlphaRaccoon.
- Spagnuolo risked $2.75 million throughout 23 prediction markets in late 2025 with near-perfect accuracy.
- The fees cowl fraud, wire fraud and cash laundering for a complete of as much as 50 years.
A Google software program engineer has been charged with insider buying and selling for allegedly utilizing confidential firm knowledge to make a sequence of worthwhile bets on Polymarket, the world’s largest prediction market platform.
Michele Spagnuolo, 36, an Italian nationwide dwelling in Switzerland, appeared earlier than a federal decide in New York on Might 27 after the US Lawyer’s Workplace for the Southern District of New York dismissed legal costs.
Spagnuolo additionally faces a parallel civil enforcement motion from the Commodity Futures Buying and selling Fee, which filed its personal grievance the identical day.
what he’s alleged to have completed
The scheme ran from October to December 2025 and exploited Spagnuolo’s privileged entry to Google’s inside knowledge techniques, in accordance with federal prosecutors and the CFTC.
- Spagnuolo had entry to inside Google software program instruments that had been marked with a “Google Confidential” banner in purple textual content.
- He had signed and authorized his understanding of Google’s confidentiality and ethics insurance policies.
- He created a Polymarket account in Might 2024 below the alias AlphaRaccoon
- Between October 15, 2025 and December 4, 2025, he risked roughly $2.75 million throughout prediction markets associated to Google’s inside knowledge.
- He trades in not less than 23 markets associated to Google’s official 2025 search record, together with Most Searched Individuals and High 5 Most Searched Individuals
- His accuracy was described as near-perfect and he generated roughly $1.2 million in income.
- As soon as Google revealed the 12 months in Search outcomes and the market settled, AlphaRaccoon collected the prize cash.
Potential costs and penalties
Spagnuolo faces three separate legal costs.
- product fraud Primarily based on the Commodity Alternate Act: Most penalty of 10 years imprisonment
- Wire fraud: As much as 20 years imprisonment
- Cash laundering: As much as 20 years imprisonment
The CFTC’s civil go well with additionally seeks damages, disgorgement of advantages, civil financial penalties, buying and selling and registration prohibitions, and a everlasting injunction in opposition to additional violations.
Why this case issues past the person
The Spagnuolo case is the second high-profile insider buying and selling prosecution particularly involving a prediction market platform. It comes at a second when the CFTC is aggressively defending its unique jurisdiction over prediction markets in opposition to state-level challenges and President Trump has publicly supported the company’s authority on this space.
Associated: US soldier suspected of utilizing categorized data to acquire $400,000 in polymarket
Disclaimer: The knowledge contained on this article is for informational and academic functions solely. This text doesn’t represent monetary recommendation or recommendation of any form. Coin Version shouldn’t be liable for any losses incurred because of using the content material, merchandise, or providers talked about. We encourage our readers to conduct due diligence earlier than taking any motion associated to our firm.