WASHINGTON — A scientist who allegedly tried to sell classified secrets to Israel had worked on the “star wars” missile-shield program, and the Justice Department said yesterday he had tried to share some of the nation’s most guarded secrets.
Arrested in an FBI sting operation, Stewart Nozette was jailed without bond yesterday and accused in federal court of two counts of attempting to communicate, deliver and transmit classified information.
Scott Hubbard, a former colleague, said Nozette was primarily a defense technologist who had worked on the Reagan-era “star wars” effort, formally named the Strategic Defense Initiative.