Accused spy scientist due in court; FBI says he tried to sell secrets

Accused spy scientist due in court

WASHINGTON — A space exploration scientist accused of attempted espionage is scheduled to appear in court to learn whether he will have to stay behind bars while he awaits trial.

Fifty-two-year-old Stewart Nozette of Chevy Chase, Md., was arrested last week. He is accused of trying to sell classified information on U.S. defense secrets to an undercover FBI agent posing as an Israeli intelligence officer. A detention hearing is scheduled for Thursday afternoon.

In decades of government work on various science and space projects, Nozette had high-level security clearances. He was known primarily as a defense technologist who had worked on the Reagan-era Star Wars missile shield effort formally named the Strategic Defense Initiative.