Balloon Boy, family move to Florida

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla., Sept. 3 (UPI) -- The Colorado man who staged the "balloon boy" charade last year had his mug shot taken Friday in Florida after moving his family there, officials said.

Richard Heene, who pleaded guilty to felony charges related to the hoax, also had fingerprints taken as required by law of any felon moving to a county in Florida, the St. Petersburg Times reported.

Dave Bristow, spokesman for the Manatee County Sheriff's Office, said Heene is listed as a general contractor living east of Bradenton.

In October, Heene schemed to pitch a reality television show by fabricating a story in which he claimed his 6-year-old son, Falcon, had accidentally taken off after climbing into the basket of a makeshift helium balloon in the family's back yard in Fort Collins.

When the balloon landed about 50 miles away no one was found inside and the boy turned up back at the family home.

Radio and television media were captivated by Heene's story, which turned out to be just that. The yarn came unraveled when the boy innocently spilled the beans while being interviewed.

Heene served 28 days in jail for falsely influencing authorities and his wife Mayumi did community service for filing a false report, the newspaper said.