Richard and Mayumi Heene Will Plead Guilty in ‘Balloon Boy’ Hoax

November 12, 2009 by Cathy Ribble
Filed under: News

Richard and Mayumi Heene, Colorado parents of “balloon boy” Falcon Heene, will plead guilty in connection with criminal charges related to the hoax. The statement was issued by Richard Heene’s attorney.

According to the statement, Richard Heene is expected to plead guilty to a felony offense of attempting to influence a public servant. Charges against Mayumi Heene carried a threat of deportation, and that was a factor in the plea negotiations.

“Mayumi Heene is a citizen of Japan. As such, any felony conviction or certain misdemeanors would result in her deportation, even though her husband and children are Americans,” the statement said.

“It is supremely ironic that law enforcement has expressed such grave concern over the welfare of the children, but it was ultimately the threat of taking the children’s mother from the family and deporting her to Japan which fueled this deal.”

Mayumi Heene will plead guilty to the lesser offense of false reporting to authorities. That charge is a misdemeanor of the lowest level. The family’s attorney said the couple could receive jail time for the charges, but the prosecutor has recommended probation.

The couple hatched the plan about two weeks before the October 16 incident and “instructed their three children to lie to authorities as well as the media regarding this hoax.” Court documents released last month indicate the couple’s motive was to “make the Heene family more marketable for future media interests.”

Millions of people across the country watched the saga on television for about two hours as the balloon floated high in the air over Colorado. The balloon was tracked by military aircraft, and rescuers on the ground chased the balloon believing six-year-old Falcon was in the balloon. When the balloon finally crashed to the ground with assistance by ground crews, suspicions of a hoax were raised immediately. Twitter users covered the entire escapade in real time, boosting coverage to untold additional numbers following the event.