By DAN ELLIOTT
Associated Press Writer
FORT COLLINS, Colo. (AP) - The sheriff who said he believed a couple was being honest when they reported their son was set adrift on a homemade helium balloon now says criminal charges will be filed in the incident.
Larimer County Sheriff Jim Alderden didn't say Saturday night what the charges would be, but he did say the parents, Richard and Mayumi Heene, aren't under arrest.
The Heenes spent much of the afternoon at the sheriff's office and were headed home where they were expected to speak to reporters.
Richard Heene has insisted that the drama that unfolded Thursday wasn't a publicity stunt. He and his wife reported that their 6-year-old son, Falcon, had been inside the flying-saucer shaped
balloon when it launched from their backyard.
Actually, Falcon had been hiding in the rafters of his family's garage.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
