Twigz
02-06-2007, 05:18 PM
A love-crazed female astronaut, disguised in a wig and trench coat, toted a knife to a Florida airport yesterday to hunt down her rival - another NASA worker allegedly having a fling with the shuttle pilot she pined for, authorities said.
Wigged-out Navy Capt. Lisa Marie Nowak, a 43-year-old married mother of three, drove all night from Texas to Orlando International Airport to try to kidnap her much-younger rival, Air Force Engineer Colleen Shipman, officials said.
Nowak even wore diapers during her drive so she wouldn't have to stop to use a bathroom and potentially miss meeting Shipman's flight, authorities said.
Nowak was apparently insanely jealous over Shipman's relationship with ruggedly handsome astronaut pilot Bill Oefelein, officials said.
Nowak told cops she and Oefelein, a dad of two, had "more than a working relationship but less than a romantic relationship" and that she wanted to quiz Shipman about Shipman's supposed dalliances with him.
Cops said Nowak, a mission specialist on Discovery last summer, wore a dark wig, glasses and a top coat as she stalked Shipman from her predawn arrival at the airport to a parking garage.
Nowak carried with her a 4-inch folding knife, BB gun, steel mallet, pepper spray, black gloves and trash bags, authorities said.
But the sharp-eyed Shipman noticed the strangely dressed woman follow her onto a bus to her garage and then continue to tail her into the facility, cops said.
Shipman hurriedly got into her car, and Nowak tried to pry open her car door and pounded on the window, claiming she needed a ride and to use a cellphone, cops said.
When Shipman rolled down her window, she was pepper-sprayed in the face, police said.
Shipman eventually managed to drive to a tollbooth to get help.
Nowak was later spotted dumping items into a trash can near a bus stop. She was nabbed after Shipman ID'd her.
Nowak told cops she wasn't planning to hurt Shipman. She told authorities she "only wanted to scare Ms. Shipman into talking to her." She planned to use the BB gun "to entice Ms Shipman to talk to her."
Wigged-out Navy Capt. Lisa Marie Nowak, a 43-year-old married mother of three, drove all night from Texas to Orlando International Airport to try to kidnap her much-younger rival, Air Force Engineer Colleen Shipman, officials said.
Nowak even wore diapers during her drive so she wouldn't have to stop to use a bathroom and potentially miss meeting Shipman's flight, authorities said.
Nowak was apparently insanely jealous over Shipman's relationship with ruggedly handsome astronaut pilot Bill Oefelein, officials said.
Nowak told cops she and Oefelein, a dad of two, had "more than a working relationship but less than a romantic relationship" and that she wanted to quiz Shipman about Shipman's supposed dalliances with him.
Cops said Nowak, a mission specialist on Discovery last summer, wore a dark wig, glasses and a top coat as she stalked Shipman from her predawn arrival at the airport to a parking garage.
Nowak carried with her a 4-inch folding knife, BB gun, steel mallet, pepper spray, black gloves and trash bags, authorities said.
But the sharp-eyed Shipman noticed the strangely dressed woman follow her onto a bus to her garage and then continue to tail her into the facility, cops said.
Shipman hurriedly got into her car, and Nowak tried to pry open her car door and pounded on the window, claiming she needed a ride and to use a cellphone, cops said.
When Shipman rolled down her window, she was pepper-sprayed in the face, police said.
Shipman eventually managed to drive to a tollbooth to get help.
Nowak was later spotted dumping items into a trash can near a bus stop. She was nabbed after Shipman ID'd her.
Nowak told cops she wasn't planning to hurt Shipman. She told authorities she "only wanted to scare Ms. Shipman into talking to her." She planned to use the BB gun "to entice Ms Shipman to talk to her."