A woman from Kansas has been convicted of fabricating a story about her ex-wife, alleging she ‘committed the first crime in space’.
Summer Worden, a former officer in Air Force Intelligence, accused her then-wife, NASA astronaut Anne McClain, of attempting to unlawfully access her bank account from the International Space Station (ISS) in July 2019.
At that time, McClain was on a six-month mission in orbit, making this accusation the first claim of a space-based crime in history.
Worden claimed that her partner had guessed her password and accessed her bank account without permission in January 2019, while they were still married.
Utilizing her intelligence background, Worden alleged that she requested information from the bank about the locations of computers that accessed her account using her login details. According to The New York Times, the bank reported that one of the networks was registered to NASA.
This accusation triggered a comprehensive investigation by the Federal Trade Commission and NASA’s Inspector General, as reported by the outlet.
However, McClain’s attorneys argued that she had Worden’s consent to manage the family’s finances, especially concerning the child they were co-parenting.
The NYT reported that Worden’s son was born a year prior to her meeting McClain, and she had not allowed McClain to adopt the child, even after their marriage at the end of 2014.
In 2018, despite being married, McClain sought shared parenting rights in a Houston court, citing concerns over Worden’s financial management.
The investigation revealed that Worden had opened the bank account in 2018, and both had access to it until January 2019, when Worden changed the login credentials.
Prosecutors indicated that Worden had provided McClain with consent and access to financial records since at least 2015.
McClain maintained her innocence, emphasizing that her access to the accounts was part of managing their joint finances, with Worden’s awareness.
During the time Worden reported the alleged crime, the couple was already embroiled in ongoing legal disputes, including a parental rights case.
Now, Worden has admitted to lying to authorities, according to US Attorney Nicholas J. Ganjei of the Southern District of Texas in a press release.
US District Judge Alfred Bennett accepted her guilty plea on November 13, with sentencing scheduled for February 12 of the following year.
Worden could face up to five years in federal prison and a fine of up to $250,000 for her false accusations against the NASA astronaut.
She is allowed to remain free on bond until the sentencing hearing.