Summer Heather Worden, 50, pleaded guilty in Houston to lying about her spouse committing bank fraud from the International Space Station. Investigators found she opened the account in 2018 and had shared credentials with her spouse as early as 2015, with both accessing it until January 2019. The NASA Office of Inspector General led the probe; prosecutors Richard D. Hanes and Brandon Fyffe handled the case. Worden faces up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine at her Feb. 12, 2026 sentencing.
Woman Admits Lying About Spouse Committing Bank Fraud from the International Space Station
Summer Heather Worden, 50, pleaded guilty in Houston to lying about her spouse committing bank fraud from the International Space Station. Investigators found she opened the account in 2018 and had shared credentials with her spouse as early as 2015, with both accessing it until January 2019. The NASA Office of Inspector General led the probe; prosecutors Richard D. Hanes and Brandon Fyffe handled the case. Worden faces up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine at her Feb. 12, 2026 sentencing.
12:58 PM, 11/15/2025Society
Woman Pleads Guilty After False Accusation of ISS Bank Fraud
Summer Heather Worden, 50, of Sedgwick County, Kansas, pleaded guilty Thursday in a federal courtroom in Houston after admitting she lied to investigators when she accused her estranged spouse of accessing her bank account while serving aboard the International Space Station.
According to a public release from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Texas, Worden alleged in July 2019 that her partner had guessed her bank password and unlawfully accessed the account while in orbit. A probe by the NASA Office of Inspector General found a different timeline: Worden opened the account in 2018, had shared login credentials and bank records with her spouse beginning in 2015, and both parties accessed the account until Worden changed the credentials in January 2019.
Case details and next steps
- Charge: Making false statements to law enforcement (federal).
- Prosecutors: Assistant U.S. Attorneys Richard D. Hanes and Brandon Fyffe.
- Investigator: NASA Office of Inspector General.
- Sentencing: Scheduled for February 12, 2026; Worden will remain on bond until that hearing.
Potential penalties: Up to five years in federal prison and a maximum fine of $250,000.
Source: U.S. Attorney's Office, Southern District of Texas.