Affidavit: Balloon Mom Admitted Hoax

Court Documents Reveal Mayumi Heene Told Deputies She and Husband Knew All Along Boy Was Hiding in House, Told Kids to Lie

(AP)  The mother of the 6-year-old boy once feared missing inside a runaway helium balloon admitted the whole saga was a hoax, according to court documents released Friday.

Mayumi Heene told sheriff's deputies that she and her husband Richard "knew all along that Falcon was hiding in the residence" in Fort Collins, according to an affidavit used to get a search warrant for the home.

She allegedly told investigators the incident was a hoax meant to make the family more marketable to the media.

"Mayumi described that she and Richard Heene devised this hoax approximately two weeks earlier. ... She and Richard had instructed their three children to lie to authorities as well as the media regarding this hoax," the affidavit said.

Richard Heene has denied a hoax. His lawyer, David Lane, said Friday he is waiting to see the evidence in the case.

"Allegations are cheap," Lane said.

Mayumi Heene's lawyer, Lee Christian, was traveling and didn't immediately respond to messages left with his office.

Larimer County Sheriff Jim Alderden has said he will recommend charges against the Heenes including conspiracy, contributing to the delinquency of a minor, making a false report to authorities, and attempting to influence a public servant. The most serious charges are felonies and carry a maximum sentence of six years in prison.

Alderden said authorities also would be seeking restitution for the costs of the balloon chase, though he didn't provide a figure.

His office has said it will likely be next week before it forwards its findings to prosecutors to decide on charges.

Follow the Balloon Boy Saga at CBSNews.com:

Richard Heene "Terrifying," Associate Says
Ex-Associate: Heene Obsessed with Fame
Lawyer:Should Balloon Boy's Parents Lose Kids?
Lawyer: Balloon Boy Parents will Surrender
Cops Seek Possible Balloon Boy Hoax Cohort
Sheriff: Balloon Boy Saga Full of Hot Air
More on the "Balloon Boy" Story at Crimesider

In frantic calls to a TV station, the police emergency dispatcher and federal aviation officials, the Heenes reported that they feared Falcon was in the homemade, saucer-like balloon when it was accidentally launched from their back yard last week.

Millions watched on TV as media and National Guard helicopters tracked the balloon across the Colorado plains. It landed in a dusty farm field, where ground crews looked inside but found no sign of the boy.

Later, the relieved-looking couple reported Falcon had been hiding in their garage the whole time. But suspicion heated up when Falcon made a comment on CNN that sounded like "You had said we did this for a show."

Sheriff's deputies questioned the parents separately on Oct. 17, two days after the flight. Mayumi Heene told authorities "she and Richard Heene had lied to authorities on October 15, 2009 (the day of the flight)," the affidavit said.

She told investigators "that the release of the flying saucer was intentional as a hoax. ... The motive for the fabricated story was to make the Heene family more marketable for future media interest," the affidavit said.

The Heenes twice had appeared on the ABC television network reality show "Wife Swap," and acquaintances said Richard Heene had plans for other possible shows.

The producer of "Wife Swap" had a show in development with the Heenes but said the deal is now off. The TLC cable network also said Heene had pitched a reality show months ago, but it passed on the offer.

Sheriff's officials declined to comment Friday.

[motherhen11]

Helium for brains.

[TrickynWV]

I would love for CBS to do a follow up story on these parents and the children 10 years from now. I'd bet 3 wooden nickels that all the kids will have police records by that time, the mother will be living in a religious cult commune, and the father will have left the family, but bred 3 more children by someone else.

[ruger_223]

No, wife will be one of the regulars on The View. Two of the boys will have their own "boy band", the other will meet an untimely death. Dad will be featured weekly on AMW.

[mick7744]

So she bailed out of the balloon?

Just for that, she WON'T have a part in Richard Heene's new reality show...Shower Time With Richard & Bubba.

He's been depicted as a control freak with a bad temper. Let's see how he does in an invironment where might really DOES make right.

He probably won't even have a choice of who he bends over for.

Sometimes, justice really does prevail!

[ftsumner1]

Probably Obama is to blame for this hoax. Tell Fox News!

[pensacola8-2009]

Didn't Fox News hire the Iraqi Foreign Information Minister - Bagdad Bob?

[nocatnowaco]

if the flied away balloon is for a publicity stunt, one would wonder what president obama had said during his presidential campaign that he would withdraw our troops from iraq and send them to afganistan is just also for a political stunt. hopefully president obama as a commander and chief is not infected by crazy distractions like the recent nw airline pilots who overshot their flight destination. alquada's terrorism is a world wide threat to all countries including all the islamic states.

[Snowhare]

Dear Media,
Please do never hire any of these two again, lest you encourage such behaviour!

Thank you.

Kind regards
Snowhare

[stryker54]

The next reality show for the is Divorce Court. Then Richard meets Bubba in the shower for entertainment.

[fariborzzak]

Not funny ,please charge them

[bobnjersey]

[The producer of "Wife Swap" had a show in development with the Heenes but said the deal is now off. The TLC cable network also said Heene had pitched a reality show months ago, but it passed on the offer.

suspicion heated up when Falcon made a comment on CNN that sounded like "You had said we did this for a show."

She allegedly told investigators the incident was a hoax meant to make the family more marketable to the media. ]

although these parents clearly excercised very poor judgement to involve their children in 'a scam' like this ... one has to wonder what all this really says about this culture of ours.

producers of shows that ultimately exploit the frailty of the human condition ... deliberately casting real life personalities as characters ... like it was fiction ... as if it was a cartoon ... where the more absurd the interactions between their characters ... the more money there is to be made ... because more will watch to witness what they've created.

shows like octomom, john and kate, all the real world seasons, the mole, survivor, fear factor, the biggest loser. they're 'using' these people for their own gain ... and our own entertainment ... all to make a buck. other people's problems shouldn't be a basis for a capitalistic venture.

leave these people alone. what they did was wrong ... but it was in the context of the circus we now call entertainment. where does the responsibility really lie for what happened here ... does it solely lie with richard and mayumi heene ... or does it lie somewhere else?

[greco99-2009]

Prior to the Iraq war some people sent false information to the news media.

These materials included crude forgeries about Iraq buying Yellowcake, false info about aluminum tubes for nuclear centerfuges, and unsubstantiated rumors of mobile biolabs presented as fact.

The people who committed these apparent 'hoaxes' on the press have not ever been called to task.

Why no investigation of who forged the yellowcake memos?

I would like to see the same standard applied to the Iraq war 'hoaxers'.

[pensacola8-2009]

I have to hand those parents some credit for trying to be competitive. Winning a TV appearnace is not as hard as it was 35 years ago when there were only 3 networks.

Pop culture drives people to do crazy things. We see stars doing whatever possible to manipulate news media. They made their stardom cheap.

We will probably see more of these publicity stunts especially if the public acceptance becomes easier to gain over time.

I won't let myself become angry over the dupe. We created the real problem and we simply have to solve it.

The parents should be forced into community service and read "The Boy who cried Wolf" to thousands of children all over their community. No one has to be perfect to teach values.

[grouchomarc-2009]

Did anyone else see the video of Henee and his boys gathered around the balloon - counting down from five.? They then released the balloon. It was then that Richard showed some anger (kicking at something) and declared that the balloon was accidentally released.
They all lied from the very beginning.

[joetheplumer]

I knew that she was lying.

[Kiona51]

After watching the clips from "Wife Swap, it clear the man is a tyrant. Mom may have been in on the hoax out of subservience or fear of him, but she took this, possibly her only window of opportunity, to be truthful...maybe the only time her kids have seen either parent act honorably. I applaud her for telling the truth and teaching those boys something powerful. I applaud her for standing up and telling the truth. No mystery as to why they have different lawyers.

[rightbehind]

Sad, The lawyers are feeding. They'll be nothing left for the family when their done.

[Skruffy1]

As for Balloon Daddy... maybe he needs to partake of James Arthur Ray's next Harmonic Wealth Weekend. After all, it's getting rich that was his objective.

[Skruffy1]

Maybe there's still a glimmer of hope for some face-time on reality TV. Is there still a "Divorce Court" show?

[wdh3007]

Guess that means no reality show for them only charges.

[skeetchamp]

I hope they get sent to prison as an example to the next fools.

[timdgrim]

Let Heene build another balloon and this time he can get in it and sail away to never be seen or heard from again.