(AsiaGameHub) – Law enforcement in New York has arrested Google security engineer Michele Spagnuolo for alleged insider trading on the prediction market platform Polymarket. ABC News reported the development, citing documents from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York.
Spagnuolo, a 36-year-old Swiss citizen, faces charges of commodity fraud, wire fraud, and money laundering.
Operating under the alias “AlphaRaccoon,” he repeatedly placed bets on who would be the most-searched person on Google in 2025. He had prior knowledge that the singer D4vd would top the search results by year’s end, even though Polymarket had rated the probability of that outcome as nearly zero.
Following Google’s publication of its Year in Search 2025 results, the AlphaRaccoon account gained $1.2 million in profit. After his win, the engineer allegedly attempted to hide the origin and ownership of the money. The court released Spagnuolo on a $2.25 million bond, with $1 million paid in cash. Google has suspended the employee, noting he accessed the information using a tool available to all staff, and Polymarket affirmed its full cooperation with the investigative authorities.
A Google spokesperson provided the following statement:
We are cooperating with law enforcement on their inquiry. The employee used a company-wide tool to access marketing materials; however, exploiting this confidential data for betting constitutes a major violation of our rules. The employee has been placed on leave, and we will take suitable measures.
This marks the second case involving Polymarket that the U.S. attorney’s office for the Southern District of New York has pursued this year.
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