Google employee – A Google software engineer, Michele Spagnuolo, was arrested and charged after prosecutors say he used confidential Google Year in Search data to win $1.2 million on Polymarket bets involving alleged murderer D4vd. He allegedly voted on polls tied to Google’s T
By the time prosecutors say the numbers hit, the bet was already placed—and the fallout was already moving.
Michele Spagnuolo, a Google software engineer, was arrested and charged after federal prosecutors unsealed a criminal complaint in New York on Wednesday. The complaint alleges he used inside information from Google to place bets connected to alleged murderer D4vd, landing a $1.2 million payout.
The case centers on how Spagnuolo allegedly got ahead of the public predictions. Prosecutors say Spagnuolo used access to confidential company data tracking user searches to place several Google-related bets on the prediction platform Polymarket.
In particular, the complaint says Spagnuolo used his “AlphaRaccoon” Polymarket account to vote “yes” for D4vd being ranked in “Google’s Top 5 Most Searched People of 2025” and for D4vd being the #1 searched person on Google this year.
Prosecutors say the “#1” option had been priced by Polymarket’s prediction mechanism with a “near-zero probability. ” but Spagnuolo allegedly had already seen what Google’s internal Year in Search data reflected for 2025. The government claims that internal information showed D4vd had replaced Kendrick Lamar as Google’s most searched person for 2025—information Spagnuolo allegedly used to wager less than $1. 000 before walking away with $1.2 million on his Google Year in Search 2025-related bets.
As the complaint describes it, the alleged misconduct didn’t stop at the wagers. Prosecutors say Spagnuolo then “took deliberate steps to conceal his unlawful use of nonpublic information by attempting to obscure the source and ownership of his unlawful proceeds.”
Federal prosecutors charged Spagnuolo with money laundering, commodities fraud, and wire fraud. He appeared before a federal magistrate judge and did not enter a plea. He was released on a $2.25 million bond.
The stakes in the case extend beyond the betting platform. D4vd remains behind bars for allegedly murdering 14-year-old Celeste Rivas Hernandez in April 2025. D4vd has pleaded not guilty.
The sequence prosecutors outline is stark: confidential search-tracking data used to time bets on Polymarket, a win of $1.2 million, then alleged efforts to hide how the proceeds were generated.
Google Michele Spagnuolo Polymarket fraud charges wire fraud money laundering commodities fraud D4vd Year in Search AlphaRaccoon Kendrick Lamar Celeste Rivas Hernandez
So Google employees are literally betting on people now? wild.
I don’t get it, the article says he used “confidential Year in Search data” like that’s news. Isn’t that just trends people already guess about? Seems like prosecutors reaching but I guess money laundering is serious.
“D4vd” sounds like some rapper name lol. So wait they’re connecting an alleged murderer to Google search lists and Polymarket? Also didn’t Polymarket set the prices? Like if it was near-zero, how was he even getting odds right unless he knew everything.
This is why I don’t trust ‘top searched’ lists. If dude had internal data, then Google isn’t just showing us what people want, it’s controlling timing and then someone makes 1.2 million and disappears. Also why is Kendrick Lamar even in court with this? I’m probably misunderstanding, but it feels like a PR distraction while the other guy is behind bars.