44 year-old Summer Worden has been indicted for falsely accusing NASA astronaut and estranged wife, Anne McClain, of hacking her bank account from space.
In 2019, Worden filed allegations of hacking against McClain to the Federal Trade Commission and via an interview to NASA’s Office of the Inspector General. She claimed the astronaut had breached her personal finances during a six-month mission to the International Space Station.
At the time, McClain’s attorney informed the Times that she had been conducting a routine check of the family’s finances from the space station and Worden had not stated the bank account was off-limits.
Last year, the astronaut denied any wrongdoings of hacking on Twitter by stating, “There’s unequivocally no truth to [Worden’s] claims. We’ve been going through a painful, personal separation that’s now unfortunately in the media. I appreciate the outpouring of support and will reserve comment until after the investigation. I have total confidence in the IG process.”
Following a lengthy investigation, federal prosecutors concluded that Worden lied to investigators about some relevant details regarding the date for when she set up the bank account.
Speaking to the New York Times, Worden claimed she had mistakenly given the investigators the wrong dates for her bank accounts opening but amended this by providing the correct information. She further stated, “I didn’t misrepresent anything.”
An unsealed Department of Justice indictment notes discrepancies in Worden’s timeline of events relating to the bank account. It alleges, “She claimed she had opened a new account in September 2018 and reset her login credentials in order to prevent the individual from accessing her accounts, according to the charges. However, the indictment alleges she actually opened the account in April 2018 and did not change her login credentials until January 2019.”
On Monday, April 6, the federal grand jury indicted her on two charges of false claims which could result in up to five years in prison and a fine of $250,000.
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