DENVER — Gov. Jared Polis on Wednesday pardoned the parents behind the 2009 “Balloon Boy” hoax, saying Richard and Mayumi Heene have suffered enough since claiming their 6-year-old son was trapped inside a saucer-shaped balloon that had flown away from their Fort Collins home.
Polis granted clemency to 20 others, including people convicted in drug cases and for lower-level crimes like harassment, burglary and assault.
The incident gained national notoriety, as many followed the saga of the balloon that floated all the way to Weld County — only to be found empty when it landed.
A search by national and local authorities for the boy ultimately found him hiding in his parents’ attic. The young boy, Falcon, later said it was “for the show” and his mother admitted to investigators that it was a hoax.
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