Claims balloon drama a hoax ‘pathetic’

THE father of a 6-year-old boy who was thought to be in a helium balloon that floated away and was pursued by military helicopters said yesterday accusations that the ordeal was a publicity stunt are “extremely pathetic”.

Richard Heene and his family made the rounds on television networks yesterday and the boy at the centre of the saga got sick twice when he and his father were asked during separate interviews what the boy meant when he said that “we did this for a show”.

Falcon Heene vanished around the time his family’s homemade helium balloon floated away from their home on Thursday, setting off a national uproar as authorities scoured the plains of northern Colorado for the youngster. It turned out he was hiding in the rafters of the family’s garage.

Falcon appeared to suggest he had been told what to do when he and his father were interviewed on a US show after the incident. When asked by his father why he had not emerged from hiding when his name was being called out at home Falcon said: “You had said that we did this for a show.”

The boys’ parents — Richard and Mayumi Heene — are storm chasers who appeared twice in the ABC reality show Wife Swap.

Sheriff Jim Alderden said yesterday his investigators believe there was no hoax, but will seek a new interview with the family after the CNN broadcast to clarify the statement.

Alderden told KUSA-TV in Denver yesterday that he didn’t know what to make of Falcon’s comments, but pointed out they came after hours of dealing with media questions. Alderden said investigators, trained to look at body language and verbal communication for signs of deception, were at the Heene home during the ordeal and believe they were telling the truth. Despite that, he said investigators would re-interview the family because of the comment.

During an ABC interview yesterday Falcon was asked why he said he was hiding “for a show”, at which point he said: “Mom, I feel like I'm going to vomit.” He then left the room with his mother and could be heard gagging.

During a live interview on NBC that aired simultaneously, Falcon threw up into a container when his father was answering the same question.

At the beginning of the ABC interview, Falcon was asked how he’s doing. “I feel good so far,” he answered.

Richard Heene lambasted speculation that the ordeal was a hoax.

“I went through such a rollercoaster of emotions yesterday, to have people say that, I think, is extremely pathetic,” he told ABC. “I'm not selling anything. This is what we do all the time.”

It was five hours from the time the oldest of three sons reported that Falcon, the youngest, had climbed into a saucer-shaped balloon that had drifted off, setting off a search that included military helicopters and a plan to either lower a person to the craft or place weights on the balloon to bring it down. Officials rerouted planes around the balloon’s flight path and briefly shut down Denver International Airport.

The Heenes aren’t the types to shy from attention, with sons featured in a rap music video on YouTube and the whole family appearing on the ABC show Wife Swap.

The show promoted the Heene family as storm chasers who also “devote their time to scientific experiments that include looking for extraterrestrials and building a research-gathering flying saucer to send into the eye of the storm”.