Parents of "Balloon boy" to face charges
Falcon Heene was mistakenly believed to have been carried away in a helium balloon
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By Matt Halam. |  |
Sunday, 18, Oct 2009 11:36
By Richard James.
The parents of a boy mistakenly believed to have been carried away in a helium balloon will face charges, a sheriff in Colorado has said.
Falcon Heene, six, was feared to have been inside a weather balloon which flew away on Thursday sparking mass panic and media hysteria.
He was later found, however, hiding at his family home in Fort Collins.
Sheriff Jim Alderson, speaking after interviewing Richard and Mayumi Heene, said he did not think the pair were behind a deliberate hoax but did not reveal what charges would be brought.
"We were looking at Class 3 misdemeanour, which hardly seems serious enough given the circumstances," he said.
The Heenes are due to give a press conference later today.
The disappearance of their son gripped the United States media and public and even more so when it was revealed he had been at home the entire time.
The incident took a further twist when Falcon, responding to a question about why he had stayed hidden, replied: "We did this for a show."
Speculation in the US claims the Heenes, who have appeared on the reality TV show Wife Swap, staged the entire thing as a publicity stunt.
Mr Heene, however, has continually denied such allegations.